COMMENT | The speaker is the face of Parliament

"I will also, alongside you ladies and gentlemen, work towards raising the powers of the parliamentary institution in the country so that the culture of parliamentary democracy that we practise becomes more effective, fair, and even-handed."

- Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat

COMMENT | Prime Minister (PM) Muhyiddin Yassin seems to think that his position in Parliament will get a big boost if he could get rid of the speaker and choose someone else more attuned to his political leaning.

He has got his calculation wrong because Parliament does not belong to his Perikatan Nasional (PN) government but to the people.

Thus, it follows that PN's attempt to remove the Dewan Rakyat speaker and his deputy is an attack on the dignity and impartiality of Parliament.

What did speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof (above) and his deputy Nga Kor Ming do to prompt the PN government to seek their ouster? Did they shirk from their duty to ensure Parliament is run smoothly? Did they misbehave themselves in the course of their duty?

The two did not do anything that could...