KUALA LUMPUR: The Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has to put on hold the ongoing probe on 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) until a new chairman is nominated, said Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia today.
BNBBC.my website reported Pandikar stating that the Standing Order 77(3) allows an existing member to chair a meeting in the absence of the appointed chairman or deputy chairman who might be unable to attend a meeting due to ill health or due to other specific reasons.
"But the Standing Order cannot be used when there is a vacancy."
"Furthermore, to avoid any dispute or any issues that may rise over the validity of PAC proceedings when the chairman post is vacant in the future, it is only fair if the PAC meetings are held after the new chairman is appointed,” he was quoted in the website.
Four seats were vacated after the members were appointed as ministers and deputy ministers in a Cabinet reshuffle on Tuesday. Chairman Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed is now the deputy home minister, while Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican is the deputy foreign minister and Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau is the new science, technology and innovation minister.
Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin is deputy tourism and culture minister. The swearing in ceremony was held before the Yang di-Pertuan Agong yesterday.
Pandikar was responding to PAC deputy chairman Dr Tan Seng Giaw who had said yesterday that PAC would continue its probe into 1MDB as scheduled. Dr Tan had said it had enough quorums to hold the meeting and cited the Parliament Standing Order 83 (3) which states that three members including Chairman shall fulfil the quorum to hold a meeting. The chairman here refers to the person chairing the meeting.
Dr Tan also disputed with Nur Jazlan who said on Tuesday that all PAC proceedings, including its inquiry into 1MDB are temporarily halted pending the nomination of new members to replace four after the House resumes its proceedings in October.
However, Deputy Dewan Rakyat Speaker Datuk Ronald Kiandee had told the New Straits Times yesterday that PAC cannot go on with its probe until the four members are replaced, as the composition of the bipartisan committee does not reflect the Parliament's make-up, which is necessary under the existing Standing Order of 72 (2).
Prior to the Cabinet reshuffle, PAC had scheduled Aug 4 and 5 to question 1MDB chief executive Arul Kanda Kandasamy and his predecessor, Datuk Shahrul Halmi, as part of its investigations into the government-linked investment arm.
Mohd Hazem Abdul Rahman, who served as 1MDB's CEO from March 2013 to January 2015 will appear before the panel on August 6
The committee was also planning to recall 1MDB's then-auditors - Deloitte, KPMG and Ernst & Young - along with several other 1MDB executives and directors of the company's subsidiaries for questioning in September.