Know the duties of your MPs

Democratic role: Both the Prime Minister and the Cabinet are answerable to Parliament and this is the manifestation of accountability to the rakyat.

WHEN the image of disruptive antics of some of the members of Parliament floods the mind, it is possible to overlook the important role that MPs play in a democracy like ours.

In our democracy, the Constitution is the supreme law of the nation. It decides how our government is supposed to run and sets out the roles of the executive, legislative, judiciary and the Agong.

The Malaysian Parliament is made up of Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara. During the general elections, we elect 222 MPs to the Dewan Rakyat as our representatives. Currently, we have the 14th Parliament in session which means that this Parliament is made of the MPs who were elected in the past 14th General Election. What are their roles in our democracy?

The most important role of the MPs is their legislative powers. They have the power to make the necessary laws for peace, order, development, good governance, education, national harmony, the environment and so on.

In short, all those laws that affect every aspect of our life in the country is made and passed by the majority of the MPs. This is a very important role because the kind of laws that are made will not only affect the development of the country but will impact directly on the quality of life of the citizen.

For example, in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country like ours, if we wish to keep a harmonious relationship between the citizens, the MPs need to ensure that laws are passed that forbid unjust discrimination based on ethnicity or religion.

It is not enough to speak about the rule of law if the law itself is unjust or draconian. The MPs must ensure that the laws that are passed in Parliament are properly debated from all angles and truly benefit the country and the citizens. Hence, all MPs should be given sufficient time to study and conduct research on the law sought to be debated in Parliament and not try to pass them stealthily based on partisan majority.

Stakeholders and citizens ought to ensure that their respective MPs from their constituencies properly appraise themselves of the draft bills. Since laws affect every important aspect of life from personal liberty to access to economic opportunities, this is one duty of the MPs which they should not shirk from.

I would suggest that every citizen should make sure that their respective MP perform this duty diligently. You will find constant engagements with the MPs on draft bills in a vibrant democracy including the expression of public pressure by way of peaceful protests against draft bills.

MPs are concerned with national issues and policy matters. In a mature democracy, MPs should be troubled with local issues such as the street light that’s not working or a pothole on the road.

These are municipal matters and the local authorities can look into them though the MP is also required to take care of his constituencies. However, it should ideally be a matter that requires Federal intervention, for example the issue of access to education or the quality of the national educational standard.

Our democracy is so designed that the country is run by the citizens through the proxy of their MPs. In this respect, Parliament is given the power to create the “executive body” – to enable the appointment of a Prime Minister and to allow the Prime Minister to form his cabinet of Ministers.

Though in the Constitution, it is the Agong that appoints the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister so appointed is one who commands the confidence of the majority of the MPs. In other words, the MPs become part of the ruling party or part of the opposition. Some of the MPs in the ruling party may became part of the cabinet.

Both the Prime Minister and the Cabinet are answerable to Parliament and this is the manifestation of accountability to the rakyat. The Prime Minister and his cabinet ministers may be demanded to provide explanations for their administrative actions or respective government policies.

Since our Parliament is accessible to the rakyat, it is possible for the rakyat to be the check and balance as well due this accountability and transparency of explanations in Parliament. Due to the nature of politics, and partisan interests, for accountability to truly exist, you will require a strong and credible opposition to act as a responsible watchdog or critique of unjust or irrelevant government policies.

For the government to run, you require funds. These funds come from various sources, namely taxes, incomes from government linked companies and debts of various kinds. This is why the budget is debated and passed in Parliament annually as it will determine the sources of funds and how the funds will be spent. In simple terms, Parliament has control over the rakyat’s money through the supply bills.

Government cannot spend money without the permission of Parliament. Money has a way of blinding even the gods, as the saying goes. Hence, the rakyat must ensure that the budget is debated in detail, carefully and diligently so that there is no abuse of the rakyat’s funds.

Secondly, it is important to scrutinise where the money is spent as that would show what priorities the government has set for the country.

Thirdly, we should never forget that government borrowings will become burden on the people. Is there lesser spending on education and research, and more on luxurious projects? What are the government projects? Are they necessary? A close study of the budget will not only give you an indication of how the country is going to develop, but it will also give indications of where the money is going or to whom.

Senior lawyer Datuk Seri Dr Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos is the founder and chairman of Yayasan Rapera. He can be contacted at [e-mail]. The views expressed here are solely his own.