[UPDATED] Motion to expel four Penang Perikatan reps passes

GEORGE TOWN – The motion to expel the four Perikatan Nasional (PN) elected reps from the Penang assembly has passed as expected.

More than two-thirds of the 40-member assembly voted in favour of the motion after state speaker Datuk Law Choo Kiang presided over a vote count.

The four assemblymen – led by Dr Afif Bahardin (Seberang Jaya), Zulkifli Ibrahim (Sg Acheh), Khaliq Mehtab Mohd Ishaq (Bertam) and Zolkifly Md Lazim (Telok Bahang) – then exited the chambers without fuss.

This morning, the motion was tabled by Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman (Pinang Tunggal-PKR) and seconded by state exco member Jagdeep Singh Deo (Datuk Keramat-DAP).

There were police present at the building after a text was viralled asking people to protest the move by the state government.

With this, the four are deemed to have vacated the state seats they won in the 2018 general election on a Pakatan Harapan (PH) ticket.

Bersatu, in February 2020, left the PH coalition – in an event known as the Sheraton Move – triggering the collapse of the federal government. The four also pulled their support from PH at the state level.

This morning, the motion was tabled by Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Ahmad Zakiyuddin Abdul Rahman (Pinang Tunggal-PKR) and seconded by state exco member Jagdeep Singh Deo (Datuk Keramat-DAP).

Although there were no crowds outside the building to stage a protest, police presence was spotted at the building compound.

Prior to the vote, Law reprimanded Afif for attempting to record a video of the proceedings, which led Afif to quip: “This is unfair as Parliament allows it.”

In debating the motion, Khaliq Mehtab said changing parties does not mean the elected representatives have failed their electorate, adding that he is “serving voters to the best of my ability and have proven that I can do my job despite changing parties”.

Several backbenchers then took part in a heated exchange during the debate where shouts of “Sheraton Move” and “YBs of low intelligence” can be heard.

Meanwhile, state opposition leader Datuk Muhammad Yusoff Mohd Noor (Sg Dua-BN) said he supports the anti-hopping law and that it is important to uphold it.

Yesterday, there were social media posts urging PN supporters to gather outside the state assembly building this morning.

Last week, The Vibes reported that a motion was submitted for the four PN reps to vacate their seats after they failed to obtain an interim injunction.

The landmark motion is expected to be passed because PH holds 33 state seats, which is two-thirds of the house, as opposed to PN’s five and BN’s two.

The four defected from the PH coalition to join PN in 2020 after the infamous Sheraton Move toppled the then-PH federal government.

The Penang High Court fixed March 3 to hear amendments in the case relating to the four assemblymen who filed for an injunction against the Penang assembly on a motion to vacate their seats.

However, judicial commissioner Azizan Arshad said the court cannot interfere with how Parliament or a state assembly is managed.

With this, he dismissed the applications for an interim injunction against vacating the seats.

On January 20, the high court dismissed the suits by the four Penang assemblymen against the Penang assembly and Law over a motion introduced in October 2020 compelling them to vacate their seats.

However, they filed an appeal against the decision at the Court of Appeal on January 25.

On December 16 last year, Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat dismissed the leave applications by the four assemblymen to challenge the competency of the state assembly to pass an anti-hopping law.

The four assemblymen had filed the suit in 2020 to challenge the constitutionality of Article 14A(1) of the Penang constitution and to stop their seats from being declared vacant, pursuant to Article 14A(1).

Article 14A states that an assemblyman shall vacate their seat if, having been elected as a candidate of a political party, they resign or are expelled from a party, or having been elected otherwise than as a candidate of a political party, they join a political party. – The Vibes, March 6, 2023