PARLIAMENT OF MALAYSIA

YB Tan Sri Dato' Johari bin Abdul

11th Speaker of the DEWAN rAKYAT

YB Dato' Sri Azalina Othman said YBHG. TAN SRI MOHAMAD ARIFF MD YUSOF
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department 9th Speaker of the DEWAN RAKYAT
(Law and Institutional Reform)

FRIDAY / 18 AUGUST 2023 / 8.00 pm Watch it Live on YOUTUBE

BANQUET HALL, PARLIAMENT OF MALAYSIA PARLIMEN MALAYSIA
OVERVIEW
The Parliament Lecture Series is an event co-organised by The President of the
Dewan Negara and The Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat. This bi-monthly event was
first initiated in 2019 which was known as The Speaker’s Lecture Series by Tan Sri
Dato’ Mohamad Ariff bin Md Yusof, the 9th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat. The
Parliament Lecture Series features Members of Parliament, experts and
distinguished figures who are invited to give insights on their specialised subjects
or topics of interest. The lectures are open to Members of Parliament, subject
matter experts, captains of industry, parliamentary staff, civil servants, members
of academia, students and interested and thinking public at large.

OBJECTIVE
This lecture series aims at providing a platform for the expression and exchange
of thought-provoking ideas and highlighting possible logical solutions to the
nation’s key issues by emphasizing expert opinions.

DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS
• YB Tan Sri Dato’ Johari bin Abdul,
11th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat

• YB Dato’ Sri Azalina Othman Said,

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department
(Law & Institutional Reforms)

• YBhg. Tan Sri Mohd Ariff Md. Yusoff,

9th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat
PROFILE OF
DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS

YB Tan Sri Dato' Johari bin Abdul is the current

Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat. As a trained
Administrative and Diplomatic Officer (PTD), he
served numerous Federal Departments, including
the Malaysian Students Department in Los
Angeles, USA.

YB Tan Sri Dato' Johari's foray in politics began in YB Tan Sri Dato' Johari bin Abdul
1992. He was the founding member of the 11th Speaker of the DEWAN rAKYAT
People's Justice Party (KEADILAN). In 2008, he
became the Member of Parliament for Sungai
Petani and served until October 2022. He was the
Party Whip from 2013 to 2018, Chairman of The
Parliamentary Special Select Committee on
Security and a member of the Kedah State
Legislative Assembly. YB Tan Sri Dato’ Johari
served as the Kedah State Leader of the
Opposition from October 2022 until his resignation on the 13th of December 2022
to take his oath as the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat on the 19th of December
2022.

On 5th of June 2023, Tan Sri Dato' Johari bin Abdul was conferred the Darjah
Kebesaran Panglima Setia Mahkota, the second highest federal award which
carries the title "Tan Sri" by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah
Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
PROFILE OF
DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS

Dato’ Sri Azalina Othman Said was appointed Malaysia’s Minister in the Prime
Minister's Department for Law and Institutional Reform on the 2nd of December
2022.

She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from Universiti Malaya in 1988
and went on to pursue a postgraduate degree at the London School of Economics
and Political Science where she obtained a Master of Laws. In addition, she holds
a Diploma in Public Administration (DPA) from Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM)
and completed an Executive Course on Leadership for the 21st Century at the
Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

She started her legal career in Malaysia as a legal assistant at the Raja, Darryl &
Loh law firm. From 1994 to 2001, she was an associate partner at Azalina, Chan
& Chia and, later, a partner at Skrine & Co and Zaid Ibrahim & Co – both major
law firms in Malaysia.

From 2004 to 2008, Dato’ Sri Azalina served as

Malaysia’s Youth and Sports Minister and from
2008-2009, Malaysia’s Minister of Tourism. She served
as the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department for
Parliament and Law from 2015 to 2018, and was
appointed Special Advisor to the Prime Minister for Law &
Human Rights, a position she held from October 2021 to
September 2022.

Dato’ Sri Azalina made history as the first woman to be

appointed Youth and Sports Minister in 2004 and the first
woman to be appointed as Deputy Speaker of the Dewan
Rakyat in 2020.
Apart from her vast experience as
the executive, she chaired/
co-chaired several multi-partisan
parliamentary committee &
caucus, including the All Party
Parliamentary Group Malaysia on
Prison & Detention Centre
Reforms, Parliamentary Special
Select Committee on Women and YB Dato' Sri Azalina Othman said
Children Affairs & Social Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department
(Law and Institutional Reform)
Development, as well as the
Parliamentary Caucus for
Multi-Party Democracy between
2020 to 2022.

Her passion for human rights and reform extends to the important work she has
led in the Unity Government. Since her appointment as the Minister in the Prime
Minister’s Department for Law and Institutional Reform, her efforts in protecting
the rights of children are reflected in amendments to the Sexual Offences Against
Children Act 2017 and the Evidence of Child Witnesses Act 2007; and her
commitment to championing institutional reform through the introduction of
stalking offences to the Penal Code, and the abolishment of the mandatory death
penalty and natural life sentences.

With future targets including the creation of a Law Reform Commission, an

independent Children Commission, an independent Ombudsman, and the
evaluation of proposals for Political Funding Laws and the separation of the Public
Defender's Office, Dato’ Sri Azalina remains steadfast and committed in her role in
upholding rule of law, democracy and human rights.
PROFILE OF
DISTINGUISHED SPEAKERS

Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof was the former

Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat and judge of the
Court of Appeal. He is well-versed in commercial
law, banking, securities, arbitration, constitutional
and administrative law.

Mohamad Ariff started his career in 1974 as a law

lecturer in the University of Malaya. He left the
academic world in 1986 and ventured into legal
practice. From 1993 to 1995, Mohamad Ariff was
YBHG. TAN SRI MOHAMAD ARIFF MD YUSOF
appointed as a Director with the Securities 9th Speaker of the DEWAN RAKYAT
Commission of Malaysia.

In September 2008 Mohamad

Ariff was appointed as a
Judicial Commissioner of the
High Court of Malaya and within
a year, in October 2009, he was appointed as the high
court judge. In September 2012, he became a judge of the
Court of Appeal.

Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof served as the 9th Speaker of the

Dewan Rakyat from 16th of July 2018 until 13th of July 2020.
 TENTATIVE PROGRAMME
7.00 - 8.00 PM Arrival of guests and registration
(Light refreshments will be served)

8.00 - 8.15 PM Opening remarks by

YB Tan Sri Dato’ Johari bin Abdul,
11th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat

8.15 - 8.45 PM Speech by

YB Dato’ Sri Azalina Othman Said,
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department
(Law and Institutional Reform)

8.45 - 9.15 PM Speech by

YBhg. Tan Sri Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof,
9th Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat

9.15 - 10.00 PM Question and Answer Session

10.00 PM End of Programme

PARLIAMENT OF MALAYSIA