IT has been over 2 months since the pivotal 13th General Election, and the 13th Parliament has begun its first session for the year. All the MPs have been sworn in, the Speaker has been elected, and the day-to-day battle of wits is fun fodder for supporters on both sides of the House.
For many Malaysians, Parliament appears as either a frivolous circus (entertaining at best and irritating at worst) or a mystical, mythical ziggurat of power. They are both turned off by the antics and tempestuous tantrums of some of its members and switched on by the charisma and ideas of others in the Dewan Rakyat. They may have no inkling or interest in what takes place there, or they may be armchair afficionados of the political intrigues that take place.
