KUALA LUMPUR: The government is committed to legislating an anti-hopping law to address the jumping ship phenomena among elected representatives, Minister in Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said.
However, he said the government has yet to decide whether or not to make it a criminal offence for members of parliament and state assemblymen to jump to a new political party after an election.
Wan Junaidi said this after Gobind Singh Deo (PH-Puchong) pressed him to answer on whether the planned anti-hopping law would include criminalising such an action.
"The government's stand is that we will come up with this law (anti-hopping) but whether or not it will be (considered) a crime, we will see it in the draft once it is completed.
"When the draft is done, you may pose more questions on this. This is akin to crossing the bridge before we reach the river.
"Please be patient. The motion was only recently submitted and I just had a discussion with the Attorney-General.
"Besides, this government has only been around for three weeks. A legal process requires more than three days or even three weeks which means this will take time," he said in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Wan Junaidi also assured the MPs in the House today that he would not simply bulldoze any proposed law, adding that he was looking forward to discussing the new law with all parliamentarians.