In a significant shift in the Malaysian Senate, three influential former governmental officials have assumed the roles of senators. The three are Tan Sri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, formerly the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Parliament and Law; Datuk Seri Mujahid Yusof, the former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Religious Affairs, and Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed, the ex-Deputy Home Minister.
The formal induction occurred at the Upper House with Senator Prof Datuk Seri Awang Sariyan, the acting president of the Dewan Negara, overseeing the swearing-in ceremony. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appointed Wan Junaidi and Nur Jazlan, while the Perak State Legislative Assembly elected Mujahid on May 25, to act as the state’s senatorial representative.
Wan Junaidi previously served as the legal portfolio under former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s administration from 2021 to 2022 and was the Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker from 2008 to 2013. Mujahid is also the Perak Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman and served as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) during the Pakatan Harapan administration from 2018 to 2020, while Nur Jazlan fulfilled his role as Deputy Home Minister from 2015 to 2018.
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The Dewan Negara plans a six-day sitting starting today, and amidst this, Wan Junaidi has assumed the position of Senate President. Concurrently, Nur Jazlan Mohamed emerged as the Dewan Negara deputy president through a secret ballot. Wan Junaidi announced Nur Jazlan’s election post the government-backed candidate’s triumph over another contestant.
He disclosed that “Yang Berhormat Senator Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed garnered 43 votes while Yang Berhormat Datuk Razali Idris trailed with 11 votes and eight members were absent”. This news concludes the election, rendering Nur Jazlan the new Deputy Speaker of Dewan Negara.
The nomination motion for Nur Jazlan was initially proposed by Anwar and seconded by Datuk Dr Dominic Lau Hoe Chai.
This article was originally reported by the Malay Mail.
