KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 11): The prime minister’s absence from Tuesday’s special Dewan Rakyat sitting on the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) should not be an excuse for not following the briefing and debating issues involving the interests and savings of Muslims.

Senior political adviser to the prime minister, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, in a social media post, questioned the decision by several members of Parliament to stage a walkout while issues concerning TH were being explained in the Dewan Rakyat.

“This is not a debate about the prime minister. This is about Muslims’ savings in Tabung Haji. The prime minister is not there, so does that mean MPs cannot listen and debate?” he said.

He said MPs should use the opportunity to question, debate or criticise the government based on facts if there were matters they disagreed with.

“If something is wrong, stand up and question it. If you disagree, debate it. If the government is wrong, hit it with facts. It is fine to disagree. But do not make it look like you do not care,” he said.

Zafrul described the TH issue as among the biggest involving the Muslim and Malay economy in the country's history, besides involving the savings of people from various segments of society.

Earlier, Perikatan Nasional (PN) MPs, including Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, were among those who walked out of the Dewan Rakyat and did not take part in the debate on the RCI report on TH, which was tabled by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Dr Zulkifli Hasan.

Also leaving the chamber were PN chief whip Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan and PN chairman Datuk Seri Dr Samsuri Mokhtar.

Tuesday’s Dewan Rakyat sitting debated the RCI report on the management and operations of TH for the period from 2014 to 2020.

The special sitting allowed MPs to examine the 211-page RCI report, which was made public on July 29 after the government decided it should be made known to the people.

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