Indranee Rajah on consideration of matters regarding Member of Parliament

On what basis is NCMP Hazel Poa moving a motion to suspend Transport Minister S Iswaran from Parliament, and why now? These questions were asked by Leader of the House Indranee Rajah on Tuesday (Sep 19). She moved a motion asking the Chamber to affirm that in the event a Member is investigated for possible wrongdoing, Parliament “should act in a manner that is not only firm, but also fair”. Mr Iswaran has been placed on leave of absence amid a probe by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB). Ms Indranee noted that Ms Poa had said in a Facebook post that she was seeking his suspension so that he would not receive his MP allowance. If the basis for this is that he is being investigated, said Ms Indranee, then Ms Poa’s proposal should cover all MPs under investigation - which would include Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh and Faisal Manap. They were referred to the Public Prosecutor after Parliament’s Committee of Privileges inquiry into the complaint against ex-Workers’ Party MP Raeesah Khan for lying to the House. Ms Indranee questioned if Ms Poa was also calling for Mr Singh and Mr Faisal to be suspended - and if not, why not? As for the timing of Ms Poa’s motion, Ms Indranee said all that is known at this point is that Mr Iswaran is being investigated by CPIB - the reason and result are not yet established. So, she said it is premature to take any action and to do so would be to prejudge the outcome. Ms Indranee said it is important that Parliament deal with situations like this “objectively and dispassionately” and not “attempt to exploit (them) for political ends”, but do the right thing at the right time.