KUCHING: Lengthy ministerial replies during Question Time in the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) are limiting the number of questions answered and weakening legislative scrutiny.
Bawang Assan assemblyman, Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh, said Question Time should focus on obtaining information, clarification and accountability from the Executive, rather than becoming a platform for lengthy policy speeches or political propaganda.
He said ministers should answer questions in a concise, direct and focused manner by addressing only what is asked.
“If a member asks for statistics, dates, allocations or status updates, the minister should provide those facts directly,” he said during a press conference today (May 15).
Wong added that broader policy debates and justifications should instead be reserved for ministerial winding-up speeches or motions.
He stressed that unnecessarily long replies reduced the number of questions that could be answered during a sitting, affecting the rights of assemblymen to scrutinise the government effectively.
“At present, if only about 50 out of 254 questions can be answered during a sitting – less than one-fifth – this indicates that the efficiency of Question Time may need improvement,” he said.
According to Wong, one major contributing factor was ministerial replies going beyond the scope of the original questions.
He also said ministers should provide accurate and factual information, and where detailed data was unavailable, they could undertake to provide written replies later.
Questions requiring lengthy technical explanations, he added, would be better answered in writing to allow oral Question Time to proceed more efficiently.
“Question Time belongs to all members of the House, not solely to ministers. Time should therefore be shared fairly to maximise participation,” he said.
Wong noted that in many mature parliamentary systems, ministers were expected to answer in a short, precise and focused manner.
“Brevity is regarded as a sign of mastery of the subject, respect for the House, and respect for democratic accountability,” he said.
