Dewan Negara

Upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia

Senate

Dewan Negara
ديوان نڬارا

15th Parliament
Type
Type|

Upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia

History
Founded| 11 September 1959
Leadership

President

Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah, GPS–PBB
since 22 July 2024

Deputy President

Nur Jazlan Mohamed, BN–UMNO
since 19 June 2023

Secretary

Muhd Sujairi Abdullah
since 22 February 2020

Structure
Seats| 70

Political groups

| As of 23 March 2025[update]

Government (49)

PH (18)

* PKR (9)
* DAP (5)
* AMANAH (3)
* UPKO (1)

BN (14)

* UMNO (9)
* MIC (3)
* MCA (2)

GPS (7)

* PBB (4)
* PRS (1)
* PDP (1)
* SUPP (1)

GRS (4)

* GAGASAN (2)
* PCS (1)

* STAR (1)

Independent (6)

Opposition (8)

PN (8)

* PAS (7)
* BERSATU (1)

Vacant (13)
Committees|

* Selection Committee
* House Committee
* Committee on Rights and Freedoms
* Meeting Rules Committee

Length of term

| Up to 3 years, renewable once
Meeting place
Dewan Negara Chamber
Malaysian Houses of Parliament,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Website
Official website
This article is part of a series on the

Politics of
Malaysia

Head of State

* Yang di-Pertuan Agong

* Ibrahim Iskandar

* * *

* Conference of Rulers

Legislature

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* 15th Parliament

* * *

* Senate (Dewan Negara)

* President Awang Bemee Awang Ali Basah

* * *

* House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat)

* Speaker Johari Abdul
* Leader of the Government Anwar Ibrahim
* Leader of the Opposition Hamzah Zainudin

* * *

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* Chief Secretary Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar

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* General elections: 2022

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The Dewan Negara (English: Senate, lit. 'State Council'; Jawi: ديوان نڬارا) is the upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia, consisting of 70 senators of whom 26 are elected by the state legislative assemblies, with two senators for each state, while the other 44 are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia), including four who are appointed to represent the federal territories.

The Dewan Negara usually reviews legislation that has been passed by the lower house, the Dewan Rakyat. All bills must usually be passed by both the Dewan Rakyat and the Dewan Negara (the Senate), before they are sent to the Agong for royal assent. However, if the Dewan Negara rejects a bill, it can only delay the bill's passage by a maximum of a year before it is sent to the King, a restriction similar to that placed on the House of Lords in the United Kingdom. Like the Dewan Rakyat, the Dewan Negara meets at the Malaysian Houses of Parliament in Kuala Lumpur.

Originally, the Dewan Negara was meant to act as a check on the Dewan Rakyat and represent the interests of the various states, based on the role played by its counterpart in the United States. However, the original constitution, which provided for a majority of state-elected senators, has since been modified to make the vast majority of senators instead appointed by the Agong, thus theoretically providing an avenue for a relatively non-partisan reconsideration of bills, more similar to the role of the British House of Lords.

## Membership

[edit]

Members of the Dewan Negara are referred to as "Senators" in English or "Ahli Dewan Negara" (lit. 'member of the Dewan Negara') in Malay and are accorded the honorific style of Yang Berhormat Senator. The term of office is three years and senators may only be re-appointed once, consecutively or non-consecutively.

Each of the 13 state legislative assemblies chooses two senators.[1]: 328 The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints two senators for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, and one respectively for the Federal Territories of Labuan and Putrajaya[2] on the advice of the prime minister.

Another 40 senators, regardless of their states, are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, also on the prime minister's advice.[3] Federally appointed senators must have "rendered distinguished public service or have achieved distinction in the professions, commerce, industry, agriculture, cultural activities or social service or are representative of racial minorities or are capable of representing the interests of aborigines (Orang Asli)".[4] Two senators are appointed to represent the Orang Asli, and two others to represent Malaysian Siamese.[1]: 328

The intent of the original Constitution of Malaysia, which provided for only 16 senators to be appointed by the King (thus placing them in the minority) was to give the states some say over federal policy. However, subsequent amendments have, according to Lord President of the Federal Court Tun Mohamed Suffian Mohamed Hashim, acted "contrary to the spirit of the original constitution which established the Dewan Negara specially as a body to protect in the federal Parliament, state interests against federal encroachments".[5] The original drafters envisioned the number of central appointees decreasing, perhaps to none, rather than increasing. In practice, the Senate rarely debates, let alone rejects, bills passed by the lower house.[1]: 329

To qualify, a candidate must be a Malaysian citizen at least 30 years old, residing in the Federation, must not owe allegiance to any foreign state, must not have received a prison sentence of one year or longer, and must not have been fined RM2,000 or more. Holders of a full-time profit-making position in the public service are also ineligible. There is no requirement to belong to a political party. Parliament is permitted to increase the number of senators to three per state, reduce the number of appointed senators, or abolish the post of appointed senator altogether. The process of appointment is set out by Article 45 of the Constitution.[3] The Constitution provides for direct election of the 26 senators from the states, but this clause does not take effect until Parliament passes a law bringing it into effect.[6] As of 2024, the power given to the Parliament under Clause (4) of Article 45 was never invoked and the senators remain indirectly elected.

Senators can be appointed to ministerial posts in the Cabinet by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the prime minister. However, the Dewan Negara never supplies the prime minister, as the prime minister must be a member of the Dewan Rakyat.

The Dewan Negara is not affected by the elections for the Dewan Rakyat, and senators continue to hold office despite the Dewan Rakyat's dissolution for an election.[4]

The Dewan Negara elects a president to preside over sittings of the Dewan Negara, ensure observance of the rules of the house, and interpret the Standing Orders of the house should they be disputed.[7] Should the president be absent, his deputy, the vice president, takes his place.[8]

There are constitution provisions to increase state representation to 3 senators each, and for such senators to be directly elected. However, there has not been any political movement towards these.[1]: 329

## Powers and procedure

[edit]

For a more comprehensive list, see List of acts of the Parliament of Malaysia.

The Dewan Negara may initiate legislation, except for financial and fiscal matters – a regulation directly from the Westminster system. It may also amend legislation, provided it does not deal with financial matters. Any proposed legislation must first be passed by the Dewan Rakyat. Then it is presented to the Dewan Negara in three readings. At the first, the legislation's proposer presents it to the assembly. At the second, the bill is debated. At the third, a vote is taken whether to pass or reject the bill. The Dewan Negara may not formally reject bills; it is only allowed to delay their passage by one month, or up to a year under certain circumstances. After the bill has passed or the requisite period is up, the bill is presented to the King for royal assent. If the Yang di-Pertuan Agong objects or 30 days pass without royal assent, the bill is sent back to Parliament with a list of suggested amendments. The bill must then be reapproved by both houses of Parliament. If the Yang di-Pertuan Agong still does not grant royal assent 30 days after it is presented to him again, the bill automatically becomes law. It does not take effect, however, until it is published in the Government Gazette.[9]

Although members of Parliament typically have legal immunity when it comes to freedom of discussion, a gag rule forbids discussion about certain articles of the Constitution such as the status of Bahasa Malaysia as the national language and Bumiputra privileges in Article 153.[10]

## Current composition

[edit]

Main article: Members of the Dewan Negara, 15th Malaysian Parliament

See also: List of members of the Dewan Negara

As of June 2023, the Dewan Negara has 63 senators, most of them are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.[11]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Hean Leng Ang; Amanda Whiting (2013). "Federalism and Legal Unification in Malaysia". In Daniel Halberstam; Mathias Reimann (eds.). Federalism and Legal Unification A Comparative Empirical Investigation of Twenty Systems. Springer Dordrecht. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-7398-1. ISBN 978-94-007-7398-1. ISSN 1534-6781.
2. ^ Wan Azizah Wan Omar, ed. (2020). Malaysia Baharu 2019. Department of Information Malaysia. pp. 321–322\. ISSN 0126-8627.321-322&rft.pub=Department+of+Information+Malaysia&rft.date=2020&rft.issn=0126-8627&rft_id=https://dbook.penerangan.gov.my/dbook/dmdocuments/oyb2019/mobile/index.html&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Dewan+Negara" class="Z3988">
3. ^ a b Shuid, Mahdi & Yunus, Mohd. Fauzi (2001). Malaysian Studies, p. 33. Longman. ISBN 983-74-2024-3.
4. ^ a b Henderson, John William, Vreeland, Nena, Dana, Glenn B., Hurwitz, Geoffrey B., Just, Peter, Moeller, Philip W. & Shinn, R.S. (1977). Area Handbook for Malaysia, p. 217. American University, Washington D.C., Foreign Area Studies. LCCN 771294.
5. ^ Wu, Min Aun & Hickling, R. H. (2003). Hickling's Malaysian Public Law, pp. 26–27. Petaling Jaya: Pearson Malaysia. ISBN 983-74-2518-0.
6. ^ Rachagan, S. Sothi (1993). Law and the Electoral Process in Malaysia, p. 8. Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaya Press. ISBN 967-9940-45-4.
7. ^ [1] Archived 14 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
8. ^ [2] Archived 14 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine
9. ^ Shuid & Yunus, p. 34.
10. ^ Means, Gordon P. (1991). Malaysian Politics: The Second Generation, pp. 14, 15. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-588988-6.
11. ^ "Portal Rasmi Parlimen Malaysia - Statistik Ahli Dewan Negara". www.parlimen.gov.my. Retrieved 13 October 2021.

* v
* t
* e

Current members of the Dewan Negara (Senate) by seniority

* Siti Fatimah Yahaya
* Ti Lian Ker
* Ismail Yusop
* Nga Hock Cheh
* Adrian Lasimbang
* Alan Ling Sie Kiong
* Manolan Mohamad
* Mohamad Imran Abdul Hamid
* Raj Munni Sabu
* Theodore Douglas Lind
* Mohd Yusmadi Mohd Yusoff
* Lim Hui Ying
* Husam Musa
* Nuridah Mohd Salleh
* Suresh Singh Rashpal Singh
* Yaakob Sapari
* Donald Peter Mojuntin
* Kesavadas A. Achyuthan Nair
* Isa Ab Hamid
* Ahmad Azam Hamzah
* Zaiedi Suhaili
* Tengku Zafrul Aziz
* Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri
* Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal
* Ahmad Masrizal Muhammad
* Lim Ban Hong
* Mah Hang Soon
* Mohamad Ali Mohamad
* Ras Adiba Radzi
* Bashir Alias
* Rais Yatim
* Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad
* Idris Ahmad
* Balasubramaniam Nachiappan
* Muhammad Zahid Md Arip
* Susan Chemerai Anding
* Robert Lau Hui Yew
* Rita Sarimah Patrick Insol
* Mohd Apandi Mohamad
* Ahmad Yahaya
* Othman Aziz
* Vell Paari
* Jefridin Atan
* Aknan Ehtook
* Mohan Thangarasu
* Paul Igai
* Nuing Jeluing
* Guan Dee Koh Hoi
* Jaziri Alkaf Abdillah Suffian
* Koh Nai Kwong
* Khairil Nizam Khirudin
* Bobbey Ah Fang Suan
* John Ambrose
* Mohd Radzi Md Jidin
* Teo Eng Tee
* Razali Idris
* Md Nasir Hashim

* Lists:
* 1st
* 2nd
* 3rd
* 4th
* 5th
* 6th
* 7th
* 8th
* 9th
* 10th
* 11th
* 12th
* 13th
* 14th
* 15th
* Women senators

* v
* t
* e

Parliament of Malaysia

Components|

* Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King)
* Dewan Negara (Senate)
* Dewan Rakyat (House of Representatives)

Parliamentary
officers|

| Dewan Negara|

* President of the Dewan Negara
* Secretary
* Leader of the Government in the Dewan Negara
* Leader of the Opposition in the Dewan Negara

|

Dewan Rakyat|

* Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat
* Secretary
* Prime Minister
* Leader of the House
* Leader of the Opposition
* Whips

Members|

* Served in both houses
* Represented multiple states
* 30+ years
* Seniority

| Dewan Negara|

* Current (previous)
* Women

|

Dewan Rakyat|

* Current (previous)
* Women
* Chinese
* Indians
* Father of the House
* Baby of the House

Procedure|

* Opening of Parliament
* Royal Address
* Question time
* Readings of bills
* Royal assent
* List of Acts of Parliament in Malaysia

* Standing orders
* Order Paper
* Hansard
* Committees: Dewan Negara | Dewan Rakyat

Elections|

* Last
* Next
* Dewan Negara: None (Indirect election and appointments)
* Dewan Rakyat: First-past-the-post voting
* Electoral districts
* By-elections
* Caretaker government

Locations|

* Malaysian Houses of Parliament (1963–present)
* Tunku Abdul Rahman Hall (1959–63)

* v
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* e

Legislatures of Malaysia

Parliament of
Malaysia
(list)|

| Components|

* Yang di-Pertuan Agong
* Dewan Negara
* Dewan Rakyat

|

Members of the
Dewan Negara|

* 1st
* 2nd
* 3rd
* 4th
* 5th
* 6th
* 7th
* 8th
* 9th
* 10th
* 11th
* 12th
* 13th
* 14th
* 15th
* Women
* Served in both houses
* Represented multiple states
* 30+ years
* Seniority

Members of the
Dewan Rakyat|

* 1st
* 2nd
* 3rd
* 4th
* 5th
* 6th
* 7th
* 8th
* 9th
* 10th
* 11th
* 12th
* 13th
* 14th
* 15th
* Women
* Chinese
* Indians
* Served in both houses
* Represented multiple states
* 30+ years
* Seniority
* Father of the House
* Baby of the House

State
legislatures|

| State|

* Johor (15th)
* Kedah (15th)
* Kelantan (15th)
* Malacca (15th)
* Negeri Sembilan (15th)
* Pahang (15th)
* Perak (15th)
* Perlis (15th)
* Penang (15th)
* Sabah (16th)
* Sarawak (19th)
* Selangor (15th)
* Terengganu (15th)

|

Members|

* 1959–1964
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* 1986–1990
* 1990–1995
* 1995–1999
* 1999–2004
* 2004–2008
* 2008–2013
* 2013–2018
* 2018–2023
* 2023-present
* Women

See also: Members of the Federal Legislative Council (1955–1959)
List of Malayan State and Settlement Council Representatives (1954–1959)

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Malaysia articles

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* Sarawak communist insurgency
* Singapore in Malaysia
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* Second Malayan Emergency
* 13 May incident
* 1988 constitutional crisis
* 1997 Asian financial crisis
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Related|

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