KUCHING: Sarawak civil society organisation Rise of Social Effort (ROSE) has urged Speaker Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar to urgently consider the proposal for the Sarawak legislative assembly to increase the number of sitting days.
The proposal was made by Machan assemblyman, Allan Siden Gramong, at the recent sitting of the assembly which concluded last Wednesday.
Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, has responded positively to the proposal saying that Sarawak will consider the request and that he will leave it to the Speaker to look into it.
"ROSE agrees with the Machan assemblyman that there is a need for more time to discuss important matters or issues affecting the constituencies and that the assemblymen often have to rush to make their speeches," the CSO, also known by its Malay name Persatuan Pemangkin Daya Masyarakat, said today.
Gramong in his debate on the issue had lamented the current time constraints for the question and answer (Q&A) sessions.
"ROSE is in full agreement with the assemblyman's concerns and supports his requests to extend the number of sitting days for each session," it added.
Currently, the Sarawak state assembly convenes only eight days for each session or a total of 16 days per year.
The organisation also noted that for the recently concluded assembly sitting, of the 350 questions submitted for oral and written answers, only 41 questions were answered by the relevant ministers.
That, it added, averaged 10 answers per day over a period of four days in the eight-day sitting.
"This poses great constraints and challenges to obtaining information and answers to questions by the constituents, voters and the general public including civil society organisations who may otherwise be denied crucial data and information necessary to inform their strategies and services on the ground.
"More time for structured debates will ultimately mean the needs and aspirations of the populace are addressed."
The CSO pointed out that the wider legislative powers that Sarawak has under the State and Concurrent Lists of the Federal Constitution relative to other Peninsular states; and the ongoing efforts by Sarawak state for devolution of administrative and fiscal powers from the federal government under MA63, make the proposal to increase sitting days laudable and should be seriously considered.
"This will enable the backbenchers and opposition to play their primary role as elected representatives or lawmakers in the assembly as an oversight and a check-and-balance on the state government of the day," it added.