Historic Milestones in Malaysian Parliament: Key Reforms and Achievements
Malaysian Media Council (MMC) Bill 2024: A New Era for Media Freedom
The Dewan Rakyat marked a significant milestone in its fourth week of sitting with the passing of the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) Bill 2024. This historic achievement symbolizes a major step towards safeguarding media freedom in ensuring the public receives accurate, credible, and fair information. The idea of forming a committee or organisation to coordinate media industry governance in Malaysia was first proposed in 1973, and the establishment of the MMC is expected to enhance integrity and ethical compliance within the media industry.
Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2025 and Parliamentary Service Bill 2025: Strengthening Institutional Reforms
The Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2025 and the Parliamentary Service Bill 2025 were tabled for the first reading, marking key efforts to strengthen the institution of Parliament and introduce comprehensive institutional reforms. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said emphasized that under the MADANI Government’s institutional reform agenda, Parliamentary Services will gain autonomous power in determining policies and governance for the Malaysian Parliament.
BERNAMA (Amendment) Bill 2024: Enhancing Digital Ecosystem
The Dewan Rakyat also passed the BERNAMA (Amendment) Bill 2024, which aims to make the media industry more inclusive and ensure a new, more dynamic composition in line with the current developments and needs of the media industry. The amendments to the BERNAMA Act 1967 will expand the definition of media organisation beyond print media to include mass communication via electronic or digital media, reflecting current technological and digital advancements.
Other Key Developments
The Dewan Rakyat also approved the Auditor-General’s Report (LKAN) 1/2025 on the Federal Agencies’ Financial Statements for 2023, addressing issues related to leakages, non-compliance with regulations and conditions, and planning weaknesses to prevent recurrence. The government tabled the Supplementary Supply (2024) Bill 2025 to make provisions for the withdrawal of an amount not exceeding RM20,191,299,500 from the Consolidated Fund for additional expenditures for services in 2024. The Fire Services (Amendment) Bill 2025 was also tabled to amend the Fire Services Act 1988, seeking to introduce a new Section 50A to address impersonation of fire officers, auxiliary fire officers, and voluntary fire officers.
Conclusion
The First Meeting of the Fourth Session of the 15th Parliament, which began on February 3, will conclude on March 6 after 18 sitting days. The next Dewan Rakyat sitting is scheduled from June 23 to July 31. These historic milestones mark significant achievements in strengthening the institution of Parliament, enhancing media freedom, and promoting institutional reforms.
FAQs
- What is the Malaysian Media Council (MMC) Bill 2024?
The MMC Bill 2024 aims to safeguard media freedom in ensuring the public receives accurate, credible, and fair information. - What are the key objectives of the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2025 and the Parliamentary Service Bill 2025?
The bills aim to strengthen the institution of Parliament and introduce comprehensive institutional reforms, with a focus on enhancing autonomy and governance. - What is the purpose of the BERNAMA (Amendment) Bill 2024?
The bill aims to make the media industry more inclusive and ensure a new, more dynamic composition in line with current developments and needs of the media industry.