The State Assembly of Kedah yesterday passed the Islamic Family Law (Kedah Darul Aman) (Amendment) Enactment Bill 2022 on the age limit for marriage and laws regulating polygamy.
Kedah State Assembly Speaker Juhari Bulat said the amendment to the decree would raise the marriage age for women from 16 to 18 and increase the penalty for polygamy without court approval to one year in prison or a RM3,000 fine. compared to six months in prison or before a fine of RM1,000.
“If you still want to get married because of problems, you can apply through the court. If the court finds that the candidate should be allowed (to marry) even if she is 16 years old, she can do it with the court’s permission, it is without the court’s permission, there will be a fine,” he told reporters after the State Assembly in Wisma Darul Aman in Alor Setar.
Meanwhile, Juhari said he rejected Pengkalan Kundor MP Ismail Salleh’s urgent request on the issue of flooding and the water flooding phenomenon in Baling and Yan for failing to comply with assembly rules.
He said notification of the application was only given the day before, which doesn’t conform to the 14-day rule for ordinary private applications or the rule for urgent and important applications, which require seven days’ or at least one-day’s notice of the permission of the Kedah menteri besar.
Meanwhile, Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said that if the opposition felt the motion needed to be discussed in the assembly immediately, they could come to him to meet on the matter.
“It is clear that the motion must be presented to the Assembly within at least 14 working days, or by the Menteri Besar (for notification within) seven days, or at least one day…they have not contacted me…if you (opposition) are sincere, please (send me a) WhatsApp (message to) or write a letter,” he said.
He also urged the opposition not to politicize the issues in Baling to the point of forcing him to reveal the person responsible for approving Musang King’s Gunung Inas farm project.
“I got the report from the Forest Service, I already have the chronology and I know who signed the letter approving this project.
“Don’t make me reveal all this, I don’t want a blame game. I want to be fair to everyone. We don’t want to criticize anyone now, the important thing is the solution,” he said.
The state parliament was adjourned indefinitely.
