KUALA LUMPUR – There is no requirement for Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun to seek statutory declarations (SDs) from every single MP from coalitions for the formation of a new government.
A source, who spoke to The Vibes on condition of anonymity, said the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had explicitly mentioned that His Majesty only requires the affirmation from party leaders on their preferred alliances as well as choice of prime minister.
The source, a constitutional expert, said as such, there is no need for lawmakers to sign individual documents stating their support.
“The correct procedure is that only a letter from BN chairman (Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi) saying it supports Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as prime minister to lead the government is enough.
“As Anwar is the head of the party with the majority seats (82). There is no requirement for individual MPs as this is a formation of a government after the election,” he said.
Yesterday, the king had ordered the speaker to get leaders from the respective coalitions and parties with a substantial number of seats to inform the palace of their preferred choice of alliance.
Comptroller of the Royal Household Datuk Seri Ahmad Fadil Shamsuddin in a statement said:
“The leaders of the political parties and coalitions will be asked by the speaker to inform him on the alliances that have been agreed.
“They must also present the name of a Dewan Rakyat member who has the confidence of the majority of the House, following the coalition of the political parties, to be named as prime minister candidate,” the statement read.
The Palace has since given until 2pm tomorrow to present the name of the prime minister candidate.
Azhar later said that each MP from parties that agree to form a bloc and be part of the majority government must sign individual SDs stating their clear support for the prime minister candidate.
Prominent lawyer Datuk Seri Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos, meanwhile, said with the anti-hopping law in place, SDs are not necessary.
“With the anti-hopping law, it is sufficient for the king to talk to the presidents of each party or coalition,” he told The Vibes.
“An MP who does not agree with the party’s decision must resign, then the seat becomes vacant,” he said.
Jahaberdeen pointed out that Article 49 (A) (1) (a) of the federal constitution clearly states that if an MP resigns from the political party the seat becomes vacant.
However, if they are sacked from the party they can only become independents as the law forbids them from joining any other party.
Jahaberdeen also opined that while the speaker has been given the mandate to seek the decisions of the parties with the most seats, asking for SDs is going into the internal affairs of the political party which is not necessary.
“It is not wrong to ask for SDs – but under the current legal provisions, it is not necessary and also burdensome.
“And as we have seen, SDs are unreliable and create more confusion and problems,” Jahaberdeen said, referring to previous instances where MPs had signed more than one SD.
“My suggestion is for the Agong to talk to the heads of the political parties. Anwar represents 82 members and Zahid speaks on behalf of 30,” he said.
“Then, His Majesty can also talk to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin of Perikatan Nasional (who has 73).” – The Vibes, November 21, 2022
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