KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 25 – The action of a DAP member of Parliament Chong Chieng Jen, who used English language in the Dewan Rakyat, is against the constitution, which states that the Malay language is the national language. Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the Bandar Kuching MP’s action was improper and seemed like undermining the Parliament.
“We know that Sarawak is different, but at the national level Malay language is our official language and it is used in Parliament and also in the court. In Parliament, if its members want to speak in English, they have to ask permission from the speaker,” he told reporters after the Skills Training and Career programme’s graduation ceremony here Tuesday.
In the meantime, there were also a total of 284 graduates received their certificates in various fields here on Tuesday. Chong, when debating the 2016 Supply Bill at committee level for the Prime Minister’s Department, had raised the issue of the rights of Sabah and Sarawak MPs to speak in English, which he claimed was enshrined in the Malaysian Constitution.
