By Yasmin Ahmad Zukiman
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 6 (Bernama) — Global geopolitical uncertainty, controversy over allocations for Rural Road (JALB) development projects, and national security preparedness were among the key issues highlighted during the fifth week of the Dewan Rakyat sitting.
The sitting this week also saw allocations for the Prime Minister’s Department (JPM) and seven ministries approved at the committee stage following the completion of debates and winding-up sessions on the Supply (Budget) Bill 2027 and the Motion on the 2027 Development Expenditure Estimates, which were subsequently passed by majority votes.
The ministries are the Finance Ministry, Foreign Ministry, National Unity Ministry, Economy Ministry, Plantation and Commodities Ministry, Agriculture and Food Security Ministry, and Rural and Regional Development Ministry (KKDW). The Prime Minister’s Department also covered the portfolios of Law and Institutional Reform, Religious Affairs, Sabah and Sarawak, and Federal Territories.
Another key focus of this week’s sitting was Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s statement on the country’s security preparedness in facing developments in geopolitical conflicts as well as regional and international security tensions.
Anwar, who is also Finance Minister, said the government would strengthen the country’s preparedness to face global security threats, including by ensuring adequate and uninterrupted supplies of food, water and energy.
Five key focus areas were also outlined to achieve this, namely strengthening coordination among ministries and agencies through cooperation and information-sharing, enhancing preparedness through regular training and simulation exercises, protecting the country’s strategic infrastructure and sectors, raising public preparedness, and providing basic emergency management guidelines at household level.
This week’s sitting also saw the allocation and implementation of JALB development projects by KKDW become a heated topic of debate in the Dewan Rakyat, particularly among Members of Parliament (MPs) from Sabah and Sarawak.
Most of them sought clarification over alleged conflicting statements by KKDW and the Finance Ministry regarding the cancellation and postponement of the projects.
Addressing the issue, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Sabah and Sarawak) Datuk Mustapha Sakmud said the projects had not been cancelled but postponed to allow for a review and realignment of the allocation ceiling, as explained in detail by Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.
Mustapha also agreed that matters relating to policy and project implementation should be discussed internally at Cabinet level and should not be raised in the Dewan Rakyat to avoid confusion among the public.
Following this, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul asked Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to explain in the Dewan Rakyat the alleged conflicting statements regarding the projects.
In a letter dated Nov 4, 2026, Johari asked Ahmad Zahid, who is also Rural and Regional Development Minister, to provide the explanation by next Thursday (Nov 12) at the latest.
This followed a motion submitted by Kampar MP Chong Zhemin to refer Bagan Datuk MP Ahmad Zahid to the Parliamentary Rights and Privileges Committee under Standing Order 36 (12) of the Dewan Rakyat for allegedly making a misleading statement to the House.
Another issue that drew attention during this week’s sitting was a reminder by Johari that members of the administration should arrive early at the Dewan Rakyat instead of only showing up when it was their turn to answer questions.
He said this was necessary to ensure the smooth conduct of proceedings and prevent further incidents of absence that could create a negative perception of the House’s proceedings.
Johari issued the reminder following an incident during yesterday’s sitting when a question could not be answered because the relevant party was absent.
He said such situations could arise when an MP scheduled to ask a question was unable to attend due to unavoidable circumstances, resulting in the question having to be skipped.
According to the Dewan Rakyat calendar, the committee-stage debate on Budget 2027 is scheduled to continue until Nov 26, with another 20 ministries expected to complete their respective winding-up sessions.
The Third Meeting of the Fifth Session of the 15th Parliament runs for 37 days until Dec 8.
— BERNAMA