Malaysia's Cabinet, not King, decides on Parliament sittings: A-G

Malaysia's Attorney-General yesterday waded into a raging debate over whether the country's constitutional monarch has the right to call for Parliament to convene, saying that the King can act only on advice from the Cabinet.

The remarks by Attorney-General Idrus Harun were made the same day that religious authorities in Perak state said the royal Malay rulers serve as a check and balance in governing the country.

Tan Sri Idrus said in a statement, referring to the King: "In line with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong's power to summon Parliament to meet, based on the Cabinet's advice, the meeting dates for the Lower House and Upper House are also determined by the Cabinet."

He said a Parliament sitting required 28 days' notice, in response to political calls for the House to reconvene within two weeks.

The debate on when Parliament should sit has been hotly debated since the King, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, last week urged Parliament to reconvene "as soon as possible", putting pressure on Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to allow the Lower House to sit.

The King said this after a special meeting of the Malay rulers to discuss Malaysia's political, health and economic crises.

Parliament last sat in December last year when it passed the 2021 budget, with sittings suspended after a state of emergency was declared in mid-January.

In a sermon in Perak yesterday, congregants were told that "the rulers do not rule the country directly but their role is to ensure that the country's administration is orderly, trustworthy, transparent, and has integrity".

The sermon is unusual in that the authorities usually forbid the use of mosque pulpits to mix religion with political issues.

Meanwhile, the heads of the Lower and Upper Houses have proposed a hybrid Parliament sitting - in person and online - in late August or the first week of September.

Malaysia's Upper House, the Senate, usually meets to approve legislation passed by Parliament, the Lower House.