South China Sea Code Of Conduct And AI Grok Among Today’s Focus In Dewan Rakyat

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22 (Bernama) -- Issues related to the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, the temporary restriction on access to Grok artificial intelligence (AI), and the rationale for admitting students to Year One at the age of six will be among those discussed in the Dewan Rakyat today.

According to the Order Paper published on the official Parliament website, Datuk Mohd Isam Mohd Isa (BN-Tampin) will request the Minister of Foreign Affairs to state the latest developments in the COC negotiation process in the South China Sea and Malaysia's role in finalising the code, during Minister’s Question Time.

Mohd Isam will also ask about the security situation in the waters off Batu Puteh and the measures that have been taken and will be taken by the government to address it.

In the same session, Datuk Mumtaz Md Nawi (PN-Tumpat) will ask the Minister of Communications to state the follow-up steps regarding the temporary restriction of access to Grok AI in Malaysia, including regulatory, enforcement and continuous monitoring aspects, as well as long-term measures to protect vulnerable groups.

Also listed will be a question from Roslan Hashim (PN-Kulim Bandar Baharu) who will ask the Minister of Education to explain the rationale for allowing students to enter Year One at the age of six, and whether the government conducted empirical studies or impact assessments before the proposal was made and presented in Parliament.

Meanwhile, during the oral question-and-answer (Q&A) session, Jimmy Puah Wee Tse (PH-Tebrau) will ask the Minister of Youth and Sports about the country's achievements in the 2025 SEA Games, which met the target of 200 medals, as well as the government's plans to ensure that this performance can be maintained and improved in larger tournaments, particularly in the effort to win the first gold medal at the Olympic Games.

Rodziah Ismail (PH-Ampang) will ask the Minister of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living to state the steps to control the aggressiveness of foreign food and beverage brands and e-commerce platforms that offer very competitive selling prices, threatening the survival of local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Following the oral Q&A session, the Dewan Rakyat sitting will proceed with the debate on the Motion of Thanks for the Royal Address by members of Parliament.

This Dewan Rakyat sitting will last for 20 days until March 3, while the Senate will begin on Feb 23.

-- BERNAMA