KUALA LUMPUR – The tabling of the anti-party hopping bill scheduled for this Monday has been postponed indefinitely and has been sent for further study on what defines “party-hopping”.
Law minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the cabinet also did not agree to table the bill on Monday.
“Yes, it has been deferred,” he was quoted as saying by The Star.
The much-anticipated bill was supposed to be tabled and debated in the lower house during a special parliamentary sitting on Monday after a couple of deferments.
He, however, said the Monday sitting will carry on with the tabling of a constitutional amendment to facilitate the anti-party hopping bill in the future.
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob had said the tabling was supposed to take place in the second week of March.
On March 18, Wan Junaidi said it had to be delayed, as the government needed to get feedback from the Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional coalitions.
Discussions with the two political pacts initially scheduled in late February were postponed upon their requests due to the Johor election.
Later on March 24, Wan Junaidi told the Dewan Rakyat that the bill will instead be tabled and debated during the April 11 special sitting.
Yesterday, Free Malaysia Today quoted sources as saying that the cabinet had asked for revisions to the anti-hopping bill, especially on the definition of “party-hopping”.
This included whether an elected representative who won as an independent would be considered a party-hopper if he or she joins a political party, or if an MP joins another party after being sacked by his or her party. – The Vibes, April 7, 2022
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