Rahayu Mahzam on Electronic Gazette and Legislation Bill

The Electronic Gazette and Legislation Bill will bring the law in line with the digital age and enable the public to rely on the electronic Gazette and electronic legislation with greater confidence, said Minister of State for Digital Development and Information Rahayu Mahzam. Outlining the key changes in Parliament on Tuesday (Jan 7), she highlighted the Government Gazette as the official public record of legislation, appointments and other official acts by the Government and other public bodies. It is also used by private entities to issue notices. In a way, one can think of the Gazette as a “public noticeboard”, she said. Ms Rahayu told the House that with digitalisation, the electronic Gazette is published every working day while the print Gazette is published only once a week. In other words, the electronic Gazette is published earlier and more frequently than the print Gazette. The electronic Gazette has become the main form of the Gazette used by most of us today, said Ms Rahayu. From October to December 2024, the electronic Gazette website saw a monthly average of over 8,000 unique visitors, whereas the print Gazette only had 15 subscribers. The Government has been leveraging digital technology to improve and enhance the Gazette, said Ms Rahayu. It rolled out a new electronic Gazette website last September with significant improvements in usability, reliability, security and resilience. Ms Rahayu said while the law must move in tandem with the trend towards greater reliance on the electronic Gazette, only the print Gazette is authoritative and this status is not accorded to the electronic Gazette. “This is not compatible with how the Gazette is published and used today,” said Ms Rahayu. The Bill will confer authoritative status on the electronic Gazette, as well as electronic versions of revised editions of legislation. Similar to the Gazette, revised legislation can be published both in print and electronically. Electronic gazettes published on the prescribed website will be treated as prima facie evidence of the matters published within. Where there is inconsistency, the electronic Gazette will prevail over all other versions of the Gazette. The courts will be required to take judicial notice of the electronic Gazette, in addition to the print Gazette. “Taken together, this means that going forward, the electronic Gazette will be the authoritative version of the Gazette. Users can therefore rely on the electronic Gazette with confidence,” said Ms Rahayu. The Bill was then passed in the House.