By Danial Dzulkifly
SHAH ALAM, July 7 — Selangor Speaker Lau Weng San has dismissed the opposition’s request for a special state assembly sitting to debate the Putra Heights gas pipeline explosion incident, as a similar petition was already submitted earlier by Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
At the start of this morning’s state assembly sitting, Lau said the applications by Taman Medan state assemblyman Dr Afif Bahardin and Opposition leader Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali were rendered redundant since a special briefing and subsequent debate are already scheduled.
“The Menteri Besar has filed the same petition, and a special briefing will be held today. All state assembly members will be allowed to take part in the debate after the sitting,” he said.
Both Afif and Azmin stood up in protest, questioning why their motions were rejected, and argued that the incident involved serious public safety concerns that warranted immediate and transparent clarification from the state government.
In response, Lau explained that the applications were submitted under provision 18(1) of the Standing Orders of the Selangor State Legislative Assembly 1965. However, he said the state assembly has yet to establish a precedent for convening a special sitting through that provision.
“Until today, there is no precedent that we can refer to, not even in the Dewan Rakyat.
“The closest references available are from other Westminster parliaments in other countries, where the threshold for such motions is often far higher, like in the UK (United Kingdom), where a petition requires at least 100,000 signatures before they can even be considered,” he said.
Lau further stated that under Standing Order 14(2), government business takes precedence in determining the assembly’s schedule.
“In this case, the Menteri Besar submitted his request earlier, asking that his briefing be brought forward. That was taken into account,” he said.
Paya Jaras assemblyman Datuk Ab Halim Tamuri then asked Lau whether state assembly members would be allowed to debate the matter after the Menteri Besar’s briefing, to which the speaker again confirmed that there would be a debate on the incident.
“I’ve been informed that after the afternoon briefing, the assembly will reconvene, and members will be allowed to participate in the debate.
“The state government will be expected to respond to the points raised,” said Lau, adding that the Speaker’s office would consider feedback from lawmakers on improving the procedures under Standing Order 18(1) to ensure smoother handling of urgent matters of public interest.
