MPs tired by long hours, Johari says after narrow save on ministry budget

MPs tired by long hours, Johari says after narrow save on ministry budget

The Sungai Petani MP says they sometimes wake up late as they only reach home at midnight.

The attendance of MPs in the Dewan Rakyat has been a topic of discussion for some time now.
KUALA LUMPUR:
A Pakatan Harapan (PH) MP says representatives in the Dewan Rakyat are sometimes fatigued by the long hours, in a comment on yesterday’s proceedings which saw the 2020 budget for the women, family and community development ministry almost rejected due to a lack of PH MPs in the hall.

Sungai Petani MP Johari Abdul said MPs sometimes leave for home at nearly midnight.

“Usually during budget session, we finish late – around 10pm to 11pm. By the time we reach home, it’s 12am. When you say hi to your family, it’s around 1.30am.

“So we wake up a bit late sometimes for the morning session. We are fatigued,” he told reporters in Parliament today.

Several opposition MPs yesterday called for a bloc vote on the ministry’s budget, which would have allowed them to reject it as they had the bigger number.

However, several more PH MPs entered the hall after the speaker rang the bell for bloc voting, resulting in 32 MPs in favour of the ministry’s budget and 28 against it.

Johari said discussions should be held with the speaker on how to ensure quality time for MPs.

“I’m the first to arrive and the last to leave. But I can’t do this every day for another three years.

“There’s a limit to everything,” he added.

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