Politics

Dewan Rakyat sitting on Anti-Party Hopping Bill subject to Cabinet decision

KUALA LUMPUR: The special Dewan Rakyat sitting on the tabling of the Federal Constitution (Amendments) 2022 Bill on Anti-Party Hopping and limiting the tenure of the Prime Minister supposedly to be held on April 11 is subject to the decision by Cabinet.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the Cabinet will meet on April 6 to decide on the special Dewan Rakyat sitting.

"On March 24, I informed that a special Dewan Rakyat sitting to table the constitutional amendments to enact anti-party hopping and limit the tenure of the prime minister will be held on April 11.

"This, however, is subject to the approval by Cabinet, which will meet on April 6," he told the Dewan Negara today.

Wan Junaidi, however, stressed that political uncertainties will continue enveloping the country if constitutional amendments to enact anti-party hopping is not passed during the special Parliamentary sitting.

This is because, at the moment, there are no available legal avenues to prevent members of Parliament from switching allegiance.

"The 2018 general election (GE14) saw the emergence of two major parties (political coalitions), that is the losing and the winning bloc which formed the federal government.

"We saw the possibility of the country being governed under the two-party system similar to Conservative (Party) and Labour (Party) in the United Kingdom and the Democrats and Republicans in the United States, in which one party will provide check and balance to the ruling one.

"Unfortunately, there were numerous party-hopping incidents and the government did not have the legal infrastructure (to prevent MPs from switching camps).

"This triggered political instability in the country. For the first time in the nation's history, we saw the prime minister change thrice in one parliamentary term," said Wan Junaidi.

Therefore, he said, the Anti-Hopping Law will be tabled to prevent recurrences of MPs switching political allegiance.

"We will face the same situation if the Bill is not passed in Parliament," he said.

If the constitutional amendments to enact anti-party hopping is passed during the special sitting, he said, the law will be enforced prospectively and not retrospectively.

Wan Junaidi added that the government decided to amend the constitution to enact anti-party hopping instead of drafting a new law to ensure the matter would be difficult to be challenged in court, referring to the Federal Court case involving Kelantan assemblyman Nordin Salleh in 1992.

The administrative draft of the amendments to the constitution on anti-party hopping drafted based on the model as adopted in India, Singapore, New Zealand and the UK, said Wan Junaidi, emphasised three main matters.

Firstly, an MP is considered party hopping after he or she quits the party to become an independent lawmaker or join other political party.

"An MP who was expelled from their respective party is also considered as party hopping. This is to ensure the MPs adhere to the constitution and the disciplinary guidelines of the respective political parties," he said.

Thirdly, an independent MP who joins a political party is also considered as party hopping.

"This is because an independent MP who joins another political party violates the mandate awarded by the people who voted for them because they contested as an independent in the election.

"The people may have rejected candidates fielded by other parties (when they voted for the independent MP)," he said.

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