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PARLIAMENT, UNEXPECTED: Recollections of Parliament, Politics, and Pandemic in Malaysia
The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, despite the name, is seldom heard.
In this recollection of his short tenure as the Dewan Rakyat Speaker, Tan Sri Ariff Yusof, reveals his side of the story – dissecting the events and procedures of Parliament while providing an insider’s view of the unprecedented political developments that led to the fall of the Pakatan Harapan government in 2020 and his eventual removal. Meanwhile, a global pandemic starts to rage and was met with faltering response from the government, and a suspension of Parliament.
Can we expect change to come from the Parliament, in the current scheme of things? Is there political interest to find new ground to move beyond race and religion? Can a Speaker alone change how things are done, independent of the other branches of government?
Parliament, Unexpected brings readers through an autobiographical journey to understand the sources of our political dysfunction, and what needs to be done to reset and retell the Malaysian story for a fairer, kinder and more equitable tanah air for all.
In this recollection of his short tenure as the Dewan Rakyat Speaker, Tan Sri Ariff Yusof, reveals his side of the story – dissecting the events and procedures of Parliament while providing an insider’s view of the unprecedented political developments that led to the fall of the Pakatan Harapan government in 2020 and his eventual removal. Meanwhile, a global pandemic starts to rage and was met with faltering response from the government, and a suspension of Parliament.
Can we expect change to come from the Parliament, in the current scheme of things? Is there political interest to find new ground to move beyond race and religion? Can a Speaker alone change how things are done, independent of the other branches of government?
Parliament, Unexpected brings readers through an autobiographical journey to understand the sources of our political dysfunction, and what needs to be done to reset and retell the Malaysian story for a fairer, kinder and more equitable tanah air for all.
- GenresNonfictionPolitics
304 pages, Paperback
Published February 27, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 26, 2022
“The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, despite the name, is seldom heard.”
Parliament, Unexpected was very easy to read. If you've ever heard TS Ariff Yusof speak, you can definitely hear his voice while reading this memoir. I enjoyed how the author told the events and incidents during his tenure and incorporated the processes and mechanisms of the Parliament in an easy and understandable fashion. I also appreciated learning more about his parliamentary reform initiatives and his efforts to “merakyatkan Parlimen” during his tenure as the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat. Among several nice surprises in this book are the tale of his reluctance in moving into Speaker’s residence, which he quietly grew fond of, and the fun, rare camaraderie that sometimes manifested among the Members of Parliament in the House.
I would recommend this book for anyone taking stock in political events (particularly the Sheraton Move) in Malaysia and issues of concern in the Parliament as well as Parliament reform initiatives.
Parliament, Unexpected was very easy to read. If you've ever heard TS Ariff Yusof speak, you can definitely hear his voice while reading this memoir. I enjoyed how the author told the events and incidents during his tenure and incorporated the processes and mechanisms of the Parliament in an easy and understandable fashion. I also appreciated learning more about his parliamentary reform initiatives and his efforts to “merakyatkan Parlimen” during his tenure as the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat. Among several nice surprises in this book are the tale of his reluctance in moving into Speaker’s residence, which he quietly grew fond of, and the fun, rare camaraderie that sometimes manifested among the Members of Parliament in the House.
I would recommend this book for anyone taking stock in political events (particularly the Sheraton Move) in Malaysia and issues of concern in the Parliament as well as Parliament reform initiatives.
April 24, 2022
Told in 4 parts and from Tan Sri Ariff’s viewpoint, the main highlights of this book are the events that took place mainly after he became Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat when Pakatan Harapan was in power, and the events that followed after saboteurs betrayed the alliance.
In this book, we also learn about the many hats that Tan Sri Ariff has worn over the decades, making it seem like a natural choice of how he came to be House Speaker. There is much to admire about this self-made man with humble beginnings from Kedah, who *inhale* ended up at the Royal Military College, London School of Economics, and Lincoln’s Inn, before serving as an academic at the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya, an advocate and solicitor at Cheang & Ariff, a Director at the Securities Commission, a Director at KLOSE, a High Court Judge, and an Appellate Court Judge.
This book reveals behind-the-scenes key moments in the Malaysian parliamentary corridors of power, which nicely intersect with the public records found in the news and Hansard. Readers also get to see the finer operations of Parliament in terms of how the Standing Orders came to be, how they are operationalised during Parliament, and how they are interpreted by the learned Speaker.
We also learn about Tan Sri Ariff’s reflections on events that have brought dishonour to Parliament (a few such events come to mind, such as YB Bung Moktar’s ‘Fuck you’ outburst, the censorship of YB Waytha Moorty-ICERD fracas, and the dismissal of the Setiausaha Datum Roosme) and his thought processes on what should have been done.
Readers also get to peek into short private conversations that Tan Sri Ariff had with various personalities, such as with his parliamentary colleagues (MPs), his staff from the Speaker’s office), the Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir, and even with his international counterparts like UK House Speaker John Bercow and Australian House Clerk David Russell Elder, among others.
Other recollections that he provides are the perks that Speakers receive, such as a bodyguard and an official residence, and what they do when they are not chairing the Dewan Rakyat. He comes across as particularly proud of some of the parliamentary reform projects that he and his team initiated, such as appointing an opposition MP into parliamentary committees to enable a better check-and-balance system, improving QT practices, and rebranding parliament by making it more accessible to the public via seminars, conferences, workshops, and debate simulations in the Dewan Sementara.
However, I have my fair share of critique. I felt that in the parts where Tan Sri Ariff wrote about his background (namely Part 1), his descriptions of his growing up life came across more like a CV of sorts: a quick dossier of his education, service, career highlights, and achievements. Honestly, I would have liked to know MORE about the intimate experiences that made him the man he is today. There were many questions that went unanswered for me, like:
* What was his family like?
* What did his parents do? How did they survive WWII?
* Who were his role models?
* How were his school days?
* Was he always an obedient kid or someone who was up to mischief?
* What pushed him into the law?
* What were the highlights of studying abroad?
* What were his life-changing experiences?
Somehow it came to me that he was not ready to share some of his intimate and vulnerable sides.
I also found it intriguing that Lutfi Hakim’s voice is missing from the book. I think readers would have liked to know more about his thoughts and the parts where he contributed to this book.
Otherwise, this is a recommended read. 👍
In this book, we also learn about the many hats that Tan Sri Ariff has worn over the decades, making it seem like a natural choice of how he came to be House Speaker. There is much to admire about this self-made man with humble beginnings from Kedah, who *inhale* ended up at the Royal Military College, London School of Economics, and Lincoln’s Inn, before serving as an academic at the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya, an advocate and solicitor at Cheang & Ariff, a Director at the Securities Commission, a Director at KLOSE, a High Court Judge, and an Appellate Court Judge.
This book reveals behind-the-scenes key moments in the Malaysian parliamentary corridors of power, which nicely intersect with the public records found in the news and Hansard. Readers also get to see the finer operations of Parliament in terms of how the Standing Orders came to be, how they are operationalised during Parliament, and how they are interpreted by the learned Speaker.
We also learn about Tan Sri Ariff’s reflections on events that have brought dishonour to Parliament (a few such events come to mind, such as YB Bung Moktar’s ‘Fuck you’ outburst, the censorship of YB Waytha Moorty-ICERD fracas, and the dismissal of the Setiausaha Datum Roosme) and his thought processes on what should have been done.
Readers also get to peek into short private conversations that Tan Sri Ariff had with various personalities, such as with his parliamentary colleagues (MPs), his staff from the Speaker’s office), the Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir, and even with his international counterparts like UK House Speaker John Bercow and Australian House Clerk David Russell Elder, among others.
Other recollections that he provides are the perks that Speakers receive, such as a bodyguard and an official residence, and what they do when they are not chairing the Dewan Rakyat. He comes across as particularly proud of some of the parliamentary reform projects that he and his team initiated, such as appointing an opposition MP into parliamentary committees to enable a better check-and-balance system, improving QT practices, and rebranding parliament by making it more accessible to the public via seminars, conferences, workshops, and debate simulations in the Dewan Sementara.
However, I have my fair share of critique. I felt that in the parts where Tan Sri Ariff wrote about his background (namely Part 1), his descriptions of his growing up life came across more like a CV of sorts: a quick dossier of his education, service, career highlights, and achievements. Honestly, I would have liked to know MORE about the intimate experiences that made him the man he is today. There were many questions that went unanswered for me, like:
* What was his family like?
* What did his parents do? How did they survive WWII?
* Who were his role models?
* How were his school days?
* Was he always an obedient kid or someone who was up to mischief?
* What pushed him into the law?
* What were the highlights of studying abroad?
* What were his life-changing experiences?
Somehow it came to me that he was not ready to share some of his intimate and vulnerable sides.
I also found it intriguing that Lutfi Hakim’s voice is missing from the book. I think readers would have liked to know more about his thoughts and the parts where he contributed to this book.
Otherwise, this is a recommended read. 👍
March 20, 2022
If you're interested in law especially Constitutional Law then you'll love this book. Less of a tell-all and more of a guide on what happened in Parliament during PH's 22-month rule, this book is replete with Standing Orders and Article this and Article that and how it was used by the author to steer the august House.
It is written in an old-school style of gentility. Everyone he meets is highly praised and those who may have rubbed him the wrong way are not mentioned by name. Not much backroom politics is discussed mainly because he was never involved in any.
As mentioned above, if you love law you'll love PARLIAMENT, UNEXPECTED. I don't so I didn't really enjoy this book as much as thought I would.
It is written in an old-school style of gentility. Everyone he meets is highly praised and those who may have rubbed him the wrong way are not mentioned by name. Not much backroom politics is discussed mainly because he was never involved in any.
As mentioned above, if you love law you'll love PARLIAMENT, UNEXPECTED. I don't so I didn't really enjoy this book as much as thought I would.
March 22, 2022
The book was informative, light-hearted, engaging, easy-to-digest, and packed with some gems.
While certainly not a swashbuckling action/adventure nor marketed as such, I found myself completing the book in two days.
The book vaguely reminds me of the Inspector Mislan series and the Dato Hamid Old Boy confessions - all of which are written from the perspective of upstanding senior Malay civil servant types who are nonetheless worldly and jovial.
While certainly not a swashbuckling action/adventure nor marketed as such, I found myself completing the book in two days.
The book vaguely reminds me of the Inspector Mislan series and the Dato Hamid Old Boy confessions - all of which are written from the perspective of upstanding senior Malay civil servant types who are nonetheless worldly and jovial.
December 7, 2023
It's a good book for those who want insight about Parliament in Malaysia. You'll get better understanding how Parliament work - what they do, how they function and etc. Besides that, the book is also a good reminder of what happened during the PH's 22-months administration. Tan Sri Ariff has written the book in a simplistic manner which doesn't require a legal background to understand his perspective. Since the story is informed from a Speaker point of view, it make the book a rare gem and valuable for the next generation. It's worth to keep this book in your bookshelf at home.
December 12, 2023
Really appreciated this book for the way it sheds light on Parliamentary procedure, while giving us a peak into Tan Sri’s experience, not just as a Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, but also as the Speaker who witnessed the government through its Sheraton Move and the pandemic.
It is fascinating, filled with details about constitutional law, politics and dreams for parliamentary reform.
The tone in this book is sentimental, for what could have been, yet hopeful for what could be, and I am inspired by the work put into by our Former Speaker when he was serving the Rakyat.
It is fascinating, filled with details about constitutional law, politics and dreams for parliamentary reform.
The tone in this book is sentimental, for what could have been, yet hopeful for what could be, and I am inspired by the work put into by our Former Speaker when he was serving the Rakyat.
September 3, 2022
I started the book expecting some parts being written in legal and technical language since Tan Sri Ariff himself is a former judge. In fact, the whole book was written in a language that was easy to read and understand. Although there were some texts which were lifted from acts and standing orders, but they were then broken down through simpler elaboration.
All in all, the really Unexpected part that I learned from the book was the numerous meaningful reforms that Tan Sri Ariff had undertaken throughout his relatively brief tenure as Speaker. True to his demeanour, these achievements were not boasted about and relatively unknown to the general public. Had it not been for this account, the public may never be able to properly appreciate the great works achieved by Tan Sri Ariff's Dewan Rakyat and therefore realise of the great loss from no longer having someone of his calibre in the Dewan.
All in all, the really Unexpected part that I learned from the book was the numerous meaningful reforms that Tan Sri Ariff had undertaken throughout his relatively brief tenure as Speaker. True to his demeanour, these achievements were not boasted about and relatively unknown to the general public. Had it not been for this account, the public may never be able to properly appreciate the great works achieved by Tan Sri Ariff's Dewan Rakyat and therefore realise of the great loss from no longer having someone of his calibre in the Dewan.
May 5, 2025
Unexpectedly fun and casual read from a veteran lawyer and sex-judgeabout the ins and outs of his short lived tenure as the Dewan Rakyat Speaker.
March 19, 2022
Was afraid I can't understand legal jargons but surprisingly a light read and finished the book in three seatings.
The book moved from a 'light' read to more 'heavy' in the last third, intentionally done to provoke some thoughts about democracy and also the reform needed.
The book moved from a 'light' read to more 'heavy' in the last third, intentionally done to provoke some thoughts about democracy and also the reform needed.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews