Malaysian King wants Parliament to convene soon despite PM's plan
National emergency should also end after Aug 1 expiry date, say other Malay rulers
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Malaysia's King, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah (seated, third from left), chairing the special meeting of Malay rulers at Istana Negara in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, in a culmination of a series of audiences the King gave to 18 party chiefs and experts over the pandemic and the emergency.
PHOTO: BERNAMA
Shannon Teoh Malaysia Bureau Chief In Kuala Lumpur, Shannon Teoh
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's plan to convene Parliament as late as October was dented yesterday after Malaysia's King called for the federal legislative to meet "as soon as possible" to debate emergency laws and the nation's exit strategy from its worst Covid-19 outbreak.
This was swiftly followed by a joint statement from the Malay rulers - nine state monarchs who rotate five-year terms as the federation's king - expressing the view that the emergency, which suspends the need for legislatures to reconvene every six months, need not be extended beyond its Aug 1 expiry date.