What Exactly is The PAP Government Afraid Of In Debating AIM Tender Saga In Parliament?
Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob rejects WP Sylvia Lim's motion to delay Khaw Boon Wan's Ministerial statement over the PAP linked $2 AIM company and it’s tender award of Town Council IT Systems – http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/workers-party-motion-town-councils-inadmissible-20130509
Khaw Boon wan announced on Friday that he would be delivering a ministerial statement on the AIM Saga in Parliament when it sits next Monday.
In Response Worker's Party MP Sylvia Lim filed a request to delay the ministerial statement. She had reasoned that according to standing order 23 of parliament rules, MPs can only seek clarification on ministerial statements and are not permitted to debate them.
Ms Lim seeked to delay the ministerial statement so that she could gather more information and discuss the issue to be able to properly debate it rather than be limited to seeking clarification on the ministerial statement.
The AIM Saga has attracted endless attention from the public with many Singaporeans still having questions about the entire Saga. The MND Report on the issue did little to answer their questions and in fact only raised more questions about how unbiased the review committee really was. The whole review has been regarded by Singaporeans as a big WAYANG.
Read on the duties of the Speaker of parliament here:
Under Duties of The Speaker of Parliament (Link: http://www.parliament.gov.sg/speaker-parliament), quote:
“In carrying out the duties in the House, the Speaker must remain impartial and fair to all MPs. The Speaker regulates and enforces the rules of debate. She decides who has the right to speak and puts the question for the House to debate on and vote. The Speaker does not take part in the debates of the House but can abstain or vote for or against a motion if she has an original vote as an elected Member. As the guardian of parliamentary privileges, MPs look to the Speaker for guidance on procedure and she gives her rulings on any point of order, if necessary.”
Halimah Yacob's had ruled that Ms Lim's submission to delay the statement was inadmissible quoting the reason to be that “The subject of the motion will be fully debated under a ministerial statement to be presented at the same time.”
By her rejection of the motion to delay the debate, Halimah Yacob is essentially limiting the debate. This has raised questions such as whether she was acting "impartial and fair to all MPs" or whether she was making the PAP's job easier by restricting the questions that could be asked about the whole Saga.
PAP frightened, is It?
So why exactly is the PAP Government afraid of discussing the AIM Saga openly and in full in parliament. Do they really believe that the Wayang MND review has satisfactorily addressed all the questions regarding the whole saga?
Maybe they are hoping to sweep everything under the carpet in record time as they did with the White Paper on 6.9M population despite the public openly and clearly objecting to it?