Coordinates

6°25′″N76°32′″N

{{infobox legislature | background color

#00008B | text_color #FFFFFF | name House of Representatives | native_name Dewan Rakyat | transcription_name | legislature 12th Parliament | coa_pic Dewan rakyat.jpg | session_room | house_type Lower house | houses | leader1_type Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat | leader1 Pandikar Amin Mulia | party1 BN - UMNO | election1 28 April 2008 | members 222 Members of Parliament | structure1 12th Dewan Rakyat of Malaysia.svg | structure1_res 270px | political_groups1 (as of 29 January 2011) | last_election3 8 March 2008 | meeting_place Malaysian Houses of Parliament, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | website http://www.parlimen.gov.my/ }}

The ''Dewan Rakyat'' (Malay for ''House of Representatives'', literally ''People's Hall'') is the lower house of the Parliament of Malaysia. All bills must usually be passed by both the ''Dewan Rakyat'' and the ''Dewan Negara'' (the Senate), before they are given Royal Assent by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Monarch). Members of the ''Dewan Rakyat'' are often referred to as Members of Parliament or MPs. Like the ''Dewan Negara'', the ''Dewan Rakyat'' meets at the Malaysian Houses of Parliament in Kuala Lumpur.

Scope and procedure

As the ultimate legislative body in Malaysia, Parliament is responsible for passing, amending and repealing acts of law. It is subordinate to the Head of State, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Monarch), under Article 39 of the Constitution.

Parliament's members are permitted to speak on any subject without fear of censure outside Parliament; the only body that can censure an MP is the House Committee of Privileges. Such "Parliamentary immunity" takes effect from the moment a member of Parliament is sworn in, and only applies to when that member has the floor; it does not apply to statements made outside the House. An exception is made by the Sedition Act passed by Parliament in the wake of the May 13 racial riots in 1969. Under the Act, all public discussion of repealing certain Articles of the Constitution dealing with Bumiputra privileges such as Article 153 is illegal. This prohibition is extended to all members of both houses of Parliament. Members of Parliament are also forbidden from criticising the King and judges.

The executive government, comprising the Prime Minister and his Cabinet, is usually drawn from members of Parliament; most of its members are typically members of the ''Dewan Rakyat''. After a general election or the resignation or death of a Prime Minister, the King selects the Prime Minister, who is the Head of Government but constitutionally subordinate to him, from the ''Dewan Rakyat''. In practice, this is usually the leader of the largest party in Parliament. The Prime Minister then submits a list containing the names of members of his Cabinet, who will then be appointed as Ministers by the King. Members of the Cabinet must also be members of Parliament. If the Prime Minister loses the confidence of the ''Dewan Rakyat'', whether by losing a no-confidence vote or failing to pass a budget, he must submit his resignation to the King, who will then appoint a new Prime Minister. The Cabinet formulates government policy and drafts bills, meeting in private. Its members must accept "collective responsibility" for the decisions the Cabinet makes, even if some members disagree with it; if they do not wish to be held responsible for Cabinet decisions, they must resign. Although the Constitution makes no provision for it, there is also a Deputy Prime Minister, who is the ''de facto'' successor of the Prime Minister should he die or be otherwise incapacitated.

A proposed act of law begins its life when a particular government minister or ministry prepares a first draft with the assistance of the Attorney-General's Department. The draft, known as a bill, is then discussed by the Cabinet. If it is agreed to submit it to Parliament, the bill is distributed to all MPs. It then goes through three readings before the ''Dewan Rakyat''. The first reading is where the minister or his deputy submits it to Parliament. At the second reading, the bill is discussed and debated by MPs. At the third reading, the minister or his deputy formally submit it to a vote for approval. A 2/3 majority is usually required to pass the bill, but in certain cases, a simple majority suffices. Should the bill pass, it is sent to the ''Dewan Negara'', where the three readings are carried out again. The ''Dewan Negara'' may choose not to pass the bill, but this only delays its passage by a month, or in some cases, a year; once this period expires, the bill is considered to have been passed by the house.

If the bill passes, it is presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong who has 30 days to consider the bill. Should he disagree with it, he returns it to Parliament with a list of suggested amendments. Parliament must then reconsider the bill and its proposed amendments and return it to the King within 30 days if they pass it again. The King then has another 30 days to give the royal assent; otherwise, it passes into law. The law does not take effect until it is published in the Government Gazette.

The government attempts to maintain top secrecy regarding bills debated; MPs generally receive copies of bills only a few days before they are debated, and newspapers are rarely provided with copies of the bills before they are debated. In some cases, such as a 1968 amendment to the Constitution, an MP may be presented with a bill to be debated on the same day it is tabled, and all three readings may be carried out that day itself. In rare circumstances, the government may release a White paper containing particular proposals that will eventually be incorporated into a bill; this has been done for legislation such as the Universities and University Colleges Act.

Although the process above assumes only the government can propose bills, there also exists a process for Private Member's Bills. However, as in most other legislatures following the Westminster System, few members of Parliament actually introduce bills. To present a Private Member's Bill, the member in question must seek the leave of the House in question to debate the bill before it is moved. Originally, it was allowed to debate the bill in the process of seeking leave, but this process was discontinued by an amendment to the Standing Orders of Parliament. It is also possible for members of the ''Dewan Negara'' to initiate bills; however, only cabinet ministers are permitted to move finance-related bills, which must be tabled in the ''Dewan Rakyat''.

It is often alleged that legislation proposed by the opposition parties, which must naturally be in the form of a Private Member's Bill, is not seriously considered by Parliament. Some have gone as far as to claim that the rights of members of Parliament to debate proposed bills have been severely curtailed by incidents such as an amendment of the Standing Orders that permitted the Speaker of the ''Dewan Rakyat'' to amend written copies of MPs' speeches before they were made. Nevertheless, it is admitted by some of these critics that "Government officials often face sharp questioning in Parliament, although this [i]s not always reported in detail in the press."

Membership and machinery

A member of the ''Dewan Rakyat'' must be at least 21 years of age and must not be a member of the ''Dewan Negara''. The presiding officer of the ''Dewan Rakyat'' is the Speaker, who is elected at the beginning of each Parliament or after the vacation of the post, by the MPs. Two Deputy Speakers are also elected, and one of them sits in place of the Speaker when he is absent. The ''Dewan Rakyat'' machinery is supervised by the Clerk to the House who is appointed by the King; he may only be removed from office through the manner prescribed for judges or by mandatory retirement at age 60.

As of the 2008 general election, Dewan Rakyat has 222 elected members. Members are elected from single-member constituencies, drawn by the Election Commission based on the population. Constituency boundaries are redrawn every ten years based on the latest census.

Each ''Dewan Rakyat'' lasts for a maximum of five years, after which a general election must be called. In the general election, voters select a candidate to represent their constituency in the ''Dewan Rakyat''. The plurality voting system is used; the candidate who gains the most votes wins the seat.

Before a general election can be called, the King must first dissolve Parliament on the advice of the Prime Minister. According to Constitution, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong has his right at his own discretion either to dissolve or hold on the parliament.

Current composition

The current Speaker of the ''Dewan Rakyat'' is Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia. His deputies are Santubong MP Datuk Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar and Beluran MP Datuk Ronald Kiandee.

Current seat holding in Malaysia's ''Dewan Rakyat'' as of 29 January 2011

	Seats
align=left	National Front (Barisan Nasional):	137
align=left	United Malays National Organization (Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Bersatu, UMNO)	78
align=left	Malaysian Chinese Association (Persatuan Cina Malaysia, MCA)	15
align=left	Malaysian Indian Congress (Kongres India Se-Malaysia, MIC)	4
align=left	Malaysian People's Movement Party (Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia, Gerakan)	2
align=left	United Traditional Bumiputera Party (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, PBB)	14
align="left"	Sarawak United People's Party (Parti Rakyat Bersatu Sarawak, SUPP)	5
align="left"	Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (Parti Demokratik Progresif Sarawak, SPDP)	4
align="left"	Sarawak People's Party (Parti Rakyat Sarawak, PRS)	6
align="left"	United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation(Pertubuhan Pasok Momogun Kadazandusun Bersatu, UPKO)	4
align="left"	United Sabah Party (Parti Bersatu Sabah, PBS)	3
align="left"	United Sabah People's Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah, PBRS)	1
align="left"	Liberal Democratic Party (Parti Liberal Demokratik, LDP)	1
align="left"	People's Progressive Party (Parti Progresif Penduduk Malaysia, PPP)	0
align=left	People's Pact (Pakatan Rakyat):	75
align=left	People's Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat, PKR)	23
align=left	Islamic Party of Malaysia (Parti Islam SeMalaysia, PAS)	23
align=left	Democratic Action Party (Parti Tindakan Demokratik, DAP)	29
align=left	Socialist Party of Malaysia (Parti Sosialis Malaysia, PSM)	1
align=left	Sabah Progressive Party (Parti Maju Sabah, SAPP)	2
align=left	Non-partisans/independents (and others)(1)	7
align=left	Vacant	0
align=left	Overall total	222
	(1) The MPs representing non-partisans or independents include:	*Dato' Ibrahim Ali, MP representing Pasir Mas, formerly ran under PAS ticket during the election and won.	*Tan Tee Beng, Zahrain Mohamed Hashim , Mohsin Fadzli Samsuri, Wee Choo Keong and N Gobalakrishnan who were elected as members of Keadilan but in 2010 quit the party to sit as Independents.	*Zulkifli Nordin, who was dismissed by Keadilan in March 2010 for discplinary reasons.

Notes and references

Category:Parliament of Malaysia Category:National lower houses

de:Dewan Rakyat id:Dewan Rakyat Malaysia ms:Dewan Rakyat Malaysia ja:代議院 (マレーシア)

Coordinates	6°25′″N76°32′″N
honorific-prefix	Yang Berhormat Tuan
name	Mohamed Azmin Bin Ali
birth date	August 25, 1964
birth place	Singapore
residence	Malaysia
parliament2	Malaysian
constituency mp2	Gombak, Selangor
term start2	March 8, 2008
majority2	6,867
predecessor2	Rahman Ismail - BN
constituency am3	Bukit Antarabangsa
assembly3	Selangor State
majority3	1,381
term start3	March 8, 2008
predecessor3	Azman Wahid - BN
order4	Vice President of Parti Keadilan Rakyat
term start4	November 9, 2001
term end4	November 28, 2010
order5	Deputy President of Parti Keadilan Rakyat
term start5	November 28, 2010
party	PKR - Pakatan Rakyat
religion	Islam
occupation	Member of Parliament
spouse	Shamsida Taharin
children	3 daughters, 3 sons
website	http://blog.azminali.com
footnotes	}}

Mohamed Azmin bin Ali (born August 25, 1964 in Singapore) is a Malaysian politician and currently the Member of Parliament for the Gombak as well as assemblyman for Bukit Antarabangsa in the Selangor State Assembly. He is currently the deputy president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) in the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

Early years and education

Azmin Ali was born in Singapore but grew up and was educated in Kuala Lumpur. After attending Gurney Road School (2), High School Setapak and Technical Institute, Jalan Cheras, he obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and Economics from the University of Minnesota in 1986. In 1987, he received his Master of Education in Mathematics and Economics from the same university. Azmin successfully completed a two-month Executive Training Programme on Political Administration at St. Catherine's College, Oxford University in 1997.

Political career

At age 23, Azmin was appointed as a special officer to Anwar Ibrahim who was then Minister of Education. He was promoted as Anwar's private secretary in 1989, and continued when Anwar became Minister of Finance in and Deputy Prime Minister.

In 1998, after Anwar was convicted of sodomy and corruption, Azmin became a founding member of Parti Keadilan Nasional (National Justice Party). Keadilan entered the 1999 general elections amidst voter anger over the Anwar scandal. Azmin was elected Selangor State Assemblyman for Hulu Kelang. However, he was barred from participating in the 2004 general elections due to his conviction for lying in court during the trial against Anwar. The High Court and Court of Appeal have since acquitted him.

In November 2001, Azmin was elected as a vice president of the now-renamed Parti Keadilan Rakyat. He returned to national politics in the 2008 general elections, winning the Gombak parliamentary seat and Bukit Antarabangsa state seat in Selangor.

After a fractious and controversial party election which saw the departure of the deputy presidential hopeful Zaid Ibrahim, Azmin took over from Syed Husin Ali as the deputy president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat on November 28, 2010. The party election was marred by serious allegations of fraud and electoral misconduct perpetrated in the PKR party elections in favour of candidates aligned to ''de facto'' Parti Keadilan Rakyat leader, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, including Azmin.

Personal life

He is married to Shamshida Taharin, a finance graduate also from the University of Minnesota. The couple have six children.

Election results

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:0.5em ; font-size:95%" |+ Parliament of Malaysia: Gombak !|Year ! !|Opposition !|Votes !|Pct ! !|Barisan Nasional !|Votes !|Pct |- |2008 | | | (PKR) | align="right" |40,334 | |53% | | |Said Anuar Said Ahmad (UMNO) | align="right" |33,467 | |44%

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:0.5em ; font-size:95%" |+ Selangor State Assembly: Bukit Antarabangsa !|Year ! !|Opposition !|Votes !|Pct ! !|Barisan Nasional !|Votes !|Pct |- |2008 | | | (PKR) | align="right" |11,731 | |52% | | |Haslinda Mohd Zerain (UMNO) | align="right" |10,350 | |46%

References

Others

Personal biography

External links

Official blog

Category:Malaysian politicians Category:Living people Category:University of Minnesota alumni Category:1964 births Category:People's Justice Party (Malaysia) politicians

ms:Mohamed Azmin Ali

Coordinates	6°25′″N76°32′″N
Honorific-prefix	Yang Berbahagia Datuk Seri
Name	Wan Azizah Wan Ismail
Office	President of the People's Justice Party
Term start	4 April 1999
Predecessor	Position established
Constituency mp2	Permatang Pauh
Parliament2	Malaysian
Term start2	29 November 1999
Term end2	28 August 2008
Majority2	13,388
Predecessor2	Anwar Ibrahim
Successor2	Anwar Ibrahim
Order3	Leader of the Opposition of Malaysia
Monarch3	Mizan Zainal Abidin
Primeminister3	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Term start3	9 March 2008
Term end3	28 August 2008
Predecessor3	Lim Kit Siang
Successor3	Anwar Ibrahim
Order4	Leader of the People's Pact
Term start4	1 April 2008
Term end4	28 August 2008
Predecessor4	Position established
Successor4	Anwar Ibrahim
Birth date	December 03, 1952
Birth place	Kedah, Malaya
Party	PR-PKR
Religion	Islam
Spouse	Anwar Ibrahim }}

Yang Berbahagia Datuk Seri Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (born 3 December 1952) is a Malaysian politician. She is currently the president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (People's Justice Party) and she was the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh from 1999 to 2008. She was also the Leader of Opposition in Dewan Rakyat from March 2008 until 31 July 2008. She resigned her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh on 31 July 2008 to make way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who won the subsequent by-election on 26 August 2008.

Early life

Born in 1952, Wan Azizah received her early education in St. Nicholas Convent School, Alor Setar. She was to continue her education at Tunku Kurshiah College in Seremban. She went on to study medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland where she was awarded a gold medal in obstetrics and gynecology and she later graduated as a qualified ophthalmologist.

Dr. Wan Azizah served as a government doctor for 14 years before deciding to focus on volunteer work, when her husband, Anwar Ibrahim was appointed the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia in 1993. As part of her voluntary pursuits, she became a patron of MAKNA (''Majlis Kanser Nasional'' or ''National Cancer Council'') in that period and became the second woman to lead a political party in Malaysia's history (Ganga Nayar founded and became the first president of the Malaysian Workers' Party in 1978 ).

Wan Azizah has said that she has a Peranakan (Straits Chinese) grandfather but identifies as a Malay Muslim. It is claimed that she also has Korean ancestry.

Political career

Party founder

Following the dismissal and arrest of her husband on 20 September 1998, Dr. Wan Azizah earned the respect and admiration of many Malaysians as the leader of the fledgling Reformasi movement. She first led the Social Justice Movement (ADIL), a civil rights NGO, before helping to establish the Parti Keadilan Rakyat on 4 April 1999. The establishment of the party saw Dr. Wan Azizah being elected as the first party president.

On 3 August 2003, she brought the party into a merger with the older Malaysian People's Party (or ''Parti Rakyat Malaysia'') which saw the establishment of the People's Justice Party and was elected as the president of the newly merged party.

Member of Parliament

In the first elections competed by the party in 1999, she led the party to win 5 seats in the Parliament and was herself elected as the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh; the seat formerly held by Anwar Ibrahim; with a majority of 9,077 votes. She successfully retained the seat in the 2004 elections with a reduced majority.

As a political party leader and also a parliamentary representative, Dr. Wan Azizah is involved in many programs and activities domestically and internationally. She has spoken at UN-sponsored programs, and the local and international media. She is also the Vice-Chair of the Malaysian Parliamentary Caucus for Democracy in Myanmar and a member of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus.

March 2008 Elections

Dr. Wan Azizah won her parliament seat of Permatang Pauh in the 2008 12th General Election of Malaysia with a majority of 13,388. She was supported by all the component parties of Pakatan Rakyat to lead the opposition in the lower house of parliament, House of Representatives.

With the recent public announcement by Anwar Ibrahim regarding his intention to return to active politics despite being legally barred from doing so, Dr Wan Azizah has indicated her readiness to vacate the position of party president if he was elected. Nonetheless, she has also indicated that she intends to defend her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh.

Recent Developments

Wan Azizah was honored on the occasion of the official birthday of the Yang di-Pertua Negeri (State Governor) of Penang on 12 July 2008 when she was awarded the Darjah Panglima Pangkuan Negeri (Order of the Defender of the State), a chivalric order of the second rank in the state. The award carries the non-hereditary title of Datuk Seri.

She resigned her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh on 31 July 2008, to make way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest in a by-election, which had to be held within 60 days from the date she resigned. Anwar succeeded to the seat after winning a big majority in the by-election, on 26 August 2008.

See also

People's Justice Party

Anwar Ibrahim

Pakatan Rakyat

Reformasi (Malaysia)

References

External links

Asia Week: A Woman of Grace

Result of Malaysian General Election 2008 for Permatang Pauh

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Category:Malaysian politicians Category:Malaysian democracy activists Category:Civil rights activists Category:Malaysian doctors Category:Malaysian Muslims Category:Malaysian Malay people Category:Ophthalmologists Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Category:People's Justice Party (Malaysia) politicians

de:Wan Azizah Wan Ismail id:Wan Azizah Wan Ismail ms:Wan Azizah Wan Ismail ja:ワン・アジサ zh:旺阿兹莎