N Sembilan assembly delay raises questions of ‘one-man show’ govt, DAP rep says

The postponement of the Negeri Sembilan legislative assembly sitting has raised fresh questions over the absence of a functioning state exco, 76 days after the state election, said state opposition leader J Arul Kumar.

The Nilai assemblyperson said the administration appeared to be operating as a “one-man show”, with Menteri Besar Ismail Lasim shouldering the state’s administrative responsibilities and portfolios in the absence of 10 excos.

“Without 10 excos, can the menteri besar...

The postponement of the Negeri Sembilan legislative assembly sitting has raised fresh questions over the absence of a functioning state exco, 76 days after the state election, said state opposition leader J Arul Kumar.

The Nilai assemblyperson said the administration appeared to be operating as a “one-man show”, with Menteri Besar Ismail Lasim shouldering the state’s administrative responsibilities and portfolios in the absence of 10 excos.

“Without 10 excos, can the menteri besar alone answer questions from 35 assemblypersons from morning until evening?

“Of course, the answers will not be of sufficient quality because there are no excos responsible for specific portfolios to respond to the issues raised,” the Negeri Sembilan DAP chief told a press conference outside Wisma Negeri in Seremban today.

Arul was speaking after 11 Pakatan Harapan assemblypersons turned up for what was supposed to be the first day of the sitting, only to find it had been postponed.

He said checks on the official e-Dewan portal this morning still showed that the sitting was scheduled to run for five days, from Oct 16 to 22.

“Today was supposed to be the first day of the sitting, but when we arrived, there was no sitting.

“We were not informed of the postponement, either in writing or through e-Dewan,” he said.

In the Aug 1 state election, BN won 18 of the assembly’s 36 seats, ahead of Harapan's 11 and Perikatan Nasional's seven. Ismail was sworn in as menteri besar on Aug 2, and 10 excos were sworn in on Aug 7. However, Yang di-Pertuan Besar Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Munawir revoked their appointments on Sept 20, citing breaches of their oath of office.

Call for assembly to reconvene

Arul said the postponement of an important event such as the opening of a state assembly session should be communicated through official channels and procedures, rather than merely announced at a menteri besar’s press conference.

“As assemblypersons, the state assembly is the only avenue for us to raise the people’s problems and obtain official answers from the state government, since we are not invited to meetings at the district or state level,” he said.

He stressed that the matter should not be viewed purely as a political dispute, noting that the government holds a 25-seat majority in the state assembly.

“The administration can function properly if this issue is resolved immediately in the people’s interest,” he said.

Arul urged the state government to issue a formal notice of the postponement and reconvene the assembly as soon as possible, rather than wait until the state budget sitting.

On Oct 8, Ismail reportedly said the sitting would be postponed until the end of next month, with the state budget expected to be tabled on Nov 27.

He cited time constraints, saying the state government was prioritising preparations for the budget to ensure it addressed the needs of the state and its people.