Legislative Practice, Process and Procedure: The Roles of The Bureaucrats

In conjunction with the just-concluded State Legislative Assembly sitting, this Editorial focuses on the relationship between the two arms of the Government i.e. the Legislative and the Executive, paying special attention to the legislative practice, process and procedure, and its significance in policymaking where the roles of the bureaucrats will be fused together. The editorial feels that the current topic serves a dual purpose. Firstly, to inform public servants of the dignified role of the legislature and in particular stressing the importance attached to the passage of bills and secondly, to relate such significance to one of their most important tasks i.e. policymaking.

From a historical perspective, the Sarawak Legislative Assembly is the oldest assembly in Malaysia. The “General Council”, as it was known then, had its first meeting in Bintulu in 1867. In 1941, it was renamed as the “Council Negeri” by the 1941 Constitution. Since 1976 until today it has and still is known as “Dewan Undangan Negeri” which in fact is a direct Bahasa Malaysia translation of “State Legislative Assembly”. In the country, the Federal Parliament is bicameral in nature- where there are two “houses” namely the Lower House (Dewan Rakyat) and the Upper House (Dewan Negara) while at the State level, the State Legislative Assemblies adopt a unicameral structure.

In countries practising parliamentary democracy, legislation is the dominant form of the law-making process. It is therefore incumbent for us to have a good grasp and understanding of the legislative practice, process and procedure. The passing of the bills becomes the most prominent feature in the Dewan sitting as this will also determine the time needed to debate on the bills. There are various categories of bills namely public and private Bills, private member’s Bills, Consolidation Bills, money Bills and hybrid Bills.

Let us now examine the legislative practice. Dewan sittings are spaced to take place in the first quarter and the final quarter of the year respectively. In between, the Dewan “hibernates”. This seeming hibernation is understandable because a gestation period of about 6 or 7 months is needed to allow for the birth of new legislation. The sitting of the Dewan ranges from a number of days to about two weeks, depending on the number of Bills to be passed and whether or not it is the last session before the Dewan is prorogued paving the way for the general elections.

Come April/May and October/November, the Dewan will be bustling with activities. There are ceremonial rituals to be observed like the opening ceremony of the Dewan which include the Guard of Honour mounted by men from the General Operations Force and to be inspected by the TYT Yang DiPertua Negeri Sarawak, followed by a State dinner in the evening, either at the Astana or the Dewan’s Banquet Hall. For both these occasions, the “First Dress”(ceremonial dress) has to be worn to befit the pomp and pageantry of the events.

The Ministers, the Speaker, backbenchers, the “three wise men”, Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments have to prepare for the congregation of the august house where parliamentary debates take place. In April/May, and other normal circumstances, the debate will be centred on the “TYT’s Speech” which is equivalent to the “Queen’s Speech” in the English Parliament. In October/November, debates will centre on the “Budget Speech.”

Next, let us highlight the legislative process which results in a definite outcome, that is the laws of the State. The passage of the bill tabled in the Dewan is subjected to further parliamentary rigmarole. The process involves five distinct stages namely the First Reading, the Second Reading , the Committee stage, the Report stage and the Third Reading . The First Reading of the Bill involves the Clerk reading out the short title of the Bill and the commencement of the Second Reading. For the Second Reading and after uttering the phrase, “That the Bill be now read a second time” (Rang Undang-Undang Kerajaan - Bacaan Kali Yang Kedua) the Minister in charge of the Bill will proceed to make his main speech in favour of the Bill, explaining what the proposed measure will do, and how it has come about that it is imperative to do it. The Committee stage is when the bill is passed to a standing committee whose job is to consider the provisions of the bill in detail. The report stage is where the standing committee reports the bill back to the House for consideration of any amendments made during the committee stage. The Third Reading of the Bill requires the House to be in the Committee of the Whole House whereby the Bill will be subsequently passed.

The third part of this editorial concentrates on the procedure, where the most prominent features are Winding-up Speeches and Question Time . Winding-up Speeches or sometimes known as “Replies by Ministers” are responses made by Cabinet Ministers with regard to their specific portfolios and watching briefs. Here again, the Ministers are given ample time to deliberate on the general as well as specific issues, problems and challenges affecting their policy turf. The Ministers usually prepare their winding up speeches with the Ministry boys in order to give an overarching dimension and smooth flow to the issues and problems pertaining to their Ministries.

Question-time, dubbed as another British invention, is another trademark of a Westminster-styled Parliament. As the phrase suggests, it is a specific period set aside for Members of the Legislature to pose questions to the Ministers on issues, problems and policies pertaining to their gazetted portfolios and watching briefs. In the Dewan, questions are “prepared questions” - given earlier to the Secretary of the Dewan in writing. The Dewans’ question-time takes place on the second day of the sitting and will last before the commencement of winding-up speeches. Equally significant during Question Time are the supplementary questions which at times (devoid of supplementary facts, notes and statistics) require Ministers to be on the alert and to be able to think on their feet. Question Time normally lasts for about 50 to 60 minutes . In Australia, question-time usually lasts around 45 minutes on most sitting days. Unlike in the Dewan, questions in the Australian parliament are “questions without notice”. Attendance during “Question time” is almost “full-house”! In the English Parliament, question-time is conducted in the first 50 minutes or so, upon every sitting day except on Friday. The questions revolve around matters for which the Government is directly or not too directly responsible.

In countries like England and Australia, Question Time is a time for showcasing partisan politics at its best and at its meanest. It is also an occasion of special interest to a horde of interested parties- the Ministers, Opposition Members, Backbenchers, the Media, and Senior Public Servants . Metaphorically speaking, for Ministers, it is a time for them to demonstrate to the other members of the august house about their finer art and rubric of policymaking, their skills in crossing the Rubicon (political decision-making) and their oratorical finesse when warding off both challenging and damaging questions. They must be able to weave their way through dangerous waters, minefields and defend their grounds. For government backbenchers it is a time to provide Ministers with an opportunity to put government policies and actions in a favourable light or conversely, to disconcert the Opposition. As for the Media, question time provides them with ample sensational news for the next day’s headlines and sub-stories. As Eric Taylor, succinctly describes in his book entitled The House of Common at Work, “…scandals and accidents fortuitously come to light (including) private passions of Members”.

Question Time is indeed a battlefield. Government politicians and their political foes thus engage themselves in a battle of wits. In an indirect sense, the battle of wits takes place internally between politicians and the senior bureaucrats who, as loyal soldiers of their Generals (the Ministers) provide ample and supplemental support (researching for the answers, providing statistics and other useful information) to counter any attack from the enemy. The deft use of supplementary questions and the art of handling them is part and parcel of parliamentary skills. It goes without saying that the clever use of supplementary questions can unsaddle, unsettle and needless to say upset even political stalwarts.

Now back to the Land of the Hornbills. For over a century, the Dewan prides itself of its long-standing upholding of the fine tradition of parliamentary practice, process and procedure. The diachronic or evolutionary stages of parliamentary development indicates another milestone for Sarawak in its quest to be the most democratic State in Malaysia- a state that is able to withstand the test of time, especially in the most fundamental area of democracy i.e. lawmaking. The next time you hear the Dewan’s Sergeant-At-Arms calling “ Tuan Speaker” and carrying the majestic mace upon his shoulder, you can be assured that parliamentary democracy is very much alive in the Land of the Hornbills.

Finally, what do all these mean to us, bureaucrats and the technocrats, in the Civil Service? For one, it would entail the imperative need for all of us to be conversant and have a complete understanding of the entire legislative practice, process and procedure. In the same vein, we can ask how often do we refer to the Federal and State Constitutions, the Acts, the Ordinances and Regulations? What about being mindful of the Standing Orders? What about the process and skills needed to draft the Bills before it can be laid on the table? Secondly, this editorial emphasizes the need for civil servants to have refresher courses on the subject of the workings of the Government . It can be nostalgically recalled that students attending Lower and Upper Six Arts stream in the 1960s were fortunate to study a subject called “Government” which entails the teaching of the institutions of the Government- the Executive, Legislative, and the Judiciary including the practice, process and procedure therein. Perhaps it is timely now to reintroduce such an important subject to our students today, and hence make them beholden to appreciate the complexities of the workings of Government. It behooves upon all of us to nurture the younger generations to continuously uphold the dignity and sanctity of our parliamentary system and the intricacies of our legislative practice, process and procedure.