Dr Mahathir Mohamad has joined the opposition in calling for the Dewan Rakyat to sit for at least two weeks in the May 18 session.
A joint statement from him and Pakatan Harapan as well as Warisan leaders said there is no excuse for the government to limit the session to only a day now that Putrajaya had eased shutdown restrictions with the conditional movement control order (CMCO).
“In view of the fact that parliament has set an SOP for the meeting on May 18 and the fact that many activities are now allowed with conditions attached, there is no excuse or obstruction for parliament to be held for more than a day,” the statement said.
The statement was signed by former prime minister Dr Mahathir, PKR president Anwar Ibrahim, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and Warisan president Mohd Shafie Apdal.
They said a longer meeting would allow issues to be debated and Putrajaya to carry out its legislative duties.
“We therefore call for the sitting to be held for at least two weeks,” they said in the statement.
Yesterday, de facto law minister Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said the upcoming Dewan Rakyat session on May 18 is best left as a one-day sitting to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection.
He said Putrajaya will only introduce several relevant Bills related to following the effects of Covid-19 on the general public, businesses and companies in the July sitting.