20 police reports lodged against me, says Karpal

The Star (13/5/08): Twenty police reports have been lodged against Bukit Gelugor MP Karpal Singh for allegedly questioning the powers of the Sultan of Perak.

Speaking to reporters outside the Dewan Rakyat, Karpal Singh said he gave statements on Saturday on two police reports, saying there were 18 to go.

“But there is nothing I have done that is against the law. What I am surprised about, however, is that in my case, the investigation is being rushed and I don’t know why,” he added.

Karpal Singh said the Prime Minister had made a statement that the investigation should be speeded up because the rakyat want to know what punishment could be imposed on him.

“That is a statement that is unfair because one must be convicted before being punished, so he has found me guilty already,” he added.

Karpal Singh said he understood that the Inspector-General of Police said the investigation papers would be done in two or three days and would be forwarded to the Attorney-General.

Karpal Singh had allegedly questioned the powers of the Sultan in ordering the reinstatement of Datuk Jamry Sury as Perak Religious Department head.

On April 29, Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin had ordered the transfer of Jamry on grounds that he had been uncooperative with the state government.

Karpal Singh also expressed surprise that the Royal Court of Selangor had reacted yesterday to his statement.

He said his statement was not about the Selangor royalty, and that what he meant was that there was a disturbing trend – implying what had happened in Terengganu and Perlis after the general election.

Perak reps visit Parliament

(Malaysiakini TV)

Reps take bus to parliament

The Star (13/5/08): It was their first time travelling to attend the Dewan Rakyat sitting in Kuala Lumpur, but Perak elected representatives of the Pakatan Rakyat government dismissed the idea of taking their personal cars.

Instead, some 30 assemblymen and their personal assistants opted to take a government bus from the State Secretariat to cut down on travel costs.

Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin said that by journeying by bus, it helped the state to “save tremendously”.

“We only need to pay for the fuel and toll charges for the trip,” he told reporters before boarding the bus at 7am yesterday.

Opposition express: Mohammad Nizar (right) and other Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen boarding the bus at the Perak State Secretariat building before departing for Parliament to attend the Dewan Rakyat sitting yesterday.

“If we go individually, we would use a lot of state funds for everyone’s petrol, toll and allowance claims,” he added.

Nizar said that although they were not part of the Dewan Rakyat proceedings, he felt that the trip would allow the Pakatan Rakyat assemblyman to gain valuable exposure.

“It is the best time to learn, as most of us are first-timers. We can see how our MPs debate with the Barisan Nasional MPs.

“We can also learn how to conduct the session and gain experience from there before holding the state assembly meeting here,” he added.

Sitiawan assemblyman Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham and Pantai Remis assemblyman Nga Kor Ming, who are both MPs, greeted the group when they arrived at Parliament House in Kuala Lumpur.

When they arrived at the Parliament house, they had separate meetings with Opposition Leader Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang.