(Penang, Friday): The re-appointment of Hamzah Mohd Zain, former UMNO MP for Tasik Chenderoh as senator is confirmation that the Senate is a "rubbish-bin for political has-beens, rejects and deadwood".
What is the criteria for Hamzah’s appointment or re-appointment as Senator apart from being a "political has been, reject and deadwood"?
Has Hamzah "achieved distinction in the professions, commerce, industry, agriculture, cultural activities or social services" to justify his re-appointment as Senator as provided in the Federal Constitution and if so, let the government list out his distinguished public service!
During the 28 months he served as Senator, after failing to get renomination in the 1995 general elections, Hamzah had not distinguished himself as a Senator except for his motion of censure against me on December 22 demanding an unconditional apology and retraction from me for my reference to the Senate as a "rubbish-bin for political has-beens, rejects and deadwood".
Instead of defending the dignity of the Senate, Hamzah had caused the Dewan Negara enormous and unprecedented embarrassment as a result of his motion, focussing on the utter irrelevance and the national burden of the Upper House and the need for wide-ranging reform.
I had said on 7th January that I was prepared to apologise to the Senate if the Senators could convince me and Malaysians that it is not a "rubbish-bin for political has-beens, rejects and deadwood" and a burdensome national irrelevance.
I had even proposed a public meeting in Kuala Lumpur on 18th January where all Senators and their supporters, who had been writing letters to the newspapers to drum up support for the Senate,would be invited where their spokesmen could convince me and the Malaysian public that the Dewan Negara is not a "rubbish-bin for political has-beens, rejects and deadwood" and a burdensome national irrelevance.
However, most regrettably, not a single Senator or supporter for the Senators came forward to publicly defend the Dewan Negara so that a public meeting for a public debate on the relevance of the Dewan Negara could be held.
What Mohd Zain should do the first thing he returns to the Dewan Negara is to move a new motion to revoke the motion the Senate passed on Dec. 22 and apologise to the nation for making a fool of the Dewan Negara and to conduct a review how to make Dewan Negara relevant to the needs and aspirations of the people and country.
(6/2/98)