KOTA KINABALU – An anti-hopping law is urgently needed, said Datuk Seri Najib Razak, in light of how governments have been toppled and formed at elected representatives’ whims and fancies.
The former prime minister made the observation following the change of federal government on March 1 and the dissolution of the Sabah assembly on July 30, and ahead of next weekend’s state election.
“I think it’s about time we do it because (party-hopping) is an affront to voters,” he said in an interview with The Vibes.
“You know, it’s so easy for, say, Parti Warisan Sabah to accuse, or Pakatan Harapan (PH) to accuse, Umno of indulging in party-hopping. But at the same time, the (former Warisan) Sabah government was formed on the basis of party-hopping because we didn’t lose.
“The government switched because a few assemblymen crossed over. And, there is still the constitutional issue of whether it was done in a proper and legitimate way.
“But I suppose all that has been overtaken by events, now that there is a state election.”
The Pekan MP, fondly called “Bossku” by his supporters, pointed out that merely holding fresh elections is no solution to party-hopping.
He said the actions of political “frogs” are an insult to Malaysians who voted for their party of choice.
Najib oversaw the fall of Perak’s Pakatan Rakyat government in 2009, when three assemblymen quit and announced that they had become Barisan Nasional-friendly independents.
Meanwhile, the PH federal government under Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad collapsed after just 22 months when Gombak MP Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali’s faction in PKR, as well as a majority of members of the then prime minister’s former party, Bersatu, teamed up with Umno, PAS and Gabungan Parti Sarawak to form Perikatan Nasional, which went on to take Putrajaya.
Najib said a candidate’s election depends largely on two things: their personality and the party they represent.
“You are elected on the basis of your party and your personality. There are the two elements. And quite often, the party is bigger and stronger than your personal image, except for a few individuals. But by and large, the party is dominant.
“Yet, when they win, they feel as though they are the ones responsible for the victory.
“I think this... is a confusing state of affairs, and doesn’t lead to a stable outcome for the country. Stability is everything, especially when you talk in terms of economic recovery for the country.
“You need a stable government. You need certainty. If you don’t have a stable government, then it’s very hard for you to engender confidence in the country, or in the state, for that matter.”
He agreed in principle with the suggestion made by his Umno colleague, Padang Rengas MP Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, who on July 22 suggested in Parliament that political outfits should contest seats directly and retain control of the constituencies in the event of party-hopping.
There must be a formula or methodology to prevent politicians from jumping ship, he said, and the seat must represent voters’ choice.
On the upcoming Sabah vote, he said unlike the previous seven by-elections where BN trounced PH, the situation now is far more complex owing to the different political dynamics.
“And you have so many political parties here. There are national parties and also state-based parties. The average number of candidates is also unusually large. So, votes are going to be split. When votes are split, it will be very hard to determine the outcome.
“So, even if you have just 35% of the total votes, you might win because the votes are split, you see?
“So, it doesn’t mean you have the majority, just that you are (victorious due to) the first-past-the-post principle, which makes it more difficult to predict the outcome.” – The Vibes, September 19, 2020
Datuk Seri Najib Razak was interviewed by Terence Fernandez, Norman Goh and Azril Annuar.
