KUALA LUMPUR: The Parliamentary Services Act should be re-enacted so that Parliament can act as an independent body and run its own affairs, said Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Johari Abdul.
Johari, who was elected to the post last December, said the re-enactment of the act would allow Parliament to make decisions independently, without interference from any power.
"This is why we need the act back. If we do not re-enact it, the Parliamentary system will be very dependent on the executive, particularly regarding financial and staffing matters.
"If the act returns, Parliament can be independent in making decisions to help the people's representatives," he said after the launch of Localising SDGs and Local Issues book in Parliament here today.
Johari said an independent parliamentary system would allow financial matters to be controlled, even though the allocation was provided by the government.
"We are facing some issues in helping the people, where it might be seen that only the government bloc is helping the people. What about the opposition bloc then?
"Hence, the act will allow us more power as the expenses are controlled and the power to spend is within our jurisdiction.
"In terms of staffing, we rely a lot on the Public Service Department. If we have the powers, maybe we can hire ourselves, and hire the right people to serve. This means we do not have to outsource from them."
The Parliamentary Services Act was first enacted in 1963, a few months before the formation of Malaysia.
It allowed Parliament to act as a truly independent body, running its own affairs, selecting its staff and controlling its expenditure.
The act was repealed in 1992.
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