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Speaker: Do not undermine the institution of Parliament

KUALA LUMPUR: The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat has issued a "final warning" to all members of Parliament (MPs), urging them not to overstep boundaries by attacking the institution of Parliament or demeaning the position of the Speaker.

Tan Sri Johari Abdul said that lawmakers must recognise that their criticism and negative accusations against the Speaker's position, undermined the integrity of the Parliamentary institution.

"In the case of Pendang (Datuk Awang Hashim), he referred to 'the Speaker,' not Johari Abdul. He attacked my role as Speaker.

"There is already precedent in Parliament, which I have mentioned before, such as the Padang Serai case (N. Surendran, who was suspended for six months). He held a press conference in the lobby at that time.

"Back then, I was an MP, and action was taken against him even though it wasn't within the House," he said during a press conference after attending the launch of the 2024 Malaysian Hybrid Beef Cattle Industry Potential Seminar at the Banquet Hall in Parliament today.

In 2013, Surendran was suspended for six months for statements deemed insulting to the then-Speaker, Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia, and the Dewan Rakyat.

Johari said his decision to suspend the Pendang MP should serve as a lesson to all MPs not to attack the institution they themselves are part of.

"This is the final warning. Remember, the 10-day suspension could be extended if boundaries are crossed again," he said.

Yesterday, Awang was ordered to leave the Dewan Rakyat and suspended for 10 days for making negative allegations against Johari via TikTok on 18 July. Despite the Speaker's attempts to contact Awang, the Perikatan Nasional MP from PAS refused to retract or apologise for his actions.

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