KOTA KINABALU – Article 10 of the federal constitution must be reconciled with the anti-hopping law now in the works, said Sabah Speaker Datuk Kadzim M. Yahya.
Speaking to reporters today, he said that elected representatives who abandon their parties to switch allegiance should vacate their seats, while those choosing to remain independent should be allowed to keep their constituencies.
In the event of the rep joining another party or expressing their intention to join another, they should be allowed to recontest to prove they have the support of their voters, he said.
“The situation here is that Parliament must reconcile (the anti-hopping law) with Article 10 of the federal constitution, which covers freedom of association and voters’ trust.
“How do we reconcile (them)? If you leave the party after winning the election and join another, then it would probably be possible for the rep to vacate his seat and recontest.
“In the instance of the rep announcing their departure and then saying that they are friendly to the government of the day – they should also vacate their seats to pave the way for an election.
“By saying they are supportive of the government, they are expressing their intention to join another party,” said Kadzim, when asked to comment on the defections of politicians in Sabah.
Under current practice, elected politicians are barred from contesting for five years upon resignation or forced to vacate their seats.
Saying that it should be mandatory for party defectors to contest, Kadzim added that parties that accept political “frogs” should field them in the by-election once the seat is up for grabs again.
He said this would ensure there will be no notion that the rep has betrayed their voters’ trust, seeing that in Malaysia, voters tend to vote for the party and only a small percentage are voted in due to their personality.
On the Bugaya by-election, Kadzim said a by-election can only be held after the lifting of an emergency in the constituency, which can only be done by the king.
Kadzim opined that the Election Commission (EC) needs to be cautious about holding polls, saying it might be overwhelmed if a by-election is held in Sabah, as it needs to organise the Melaka election and the Sarawak election thereafter.
“Things might go out of hand later in Sabah if we hold the by-election now and Sabahans have to undergo a fresh round of lockdown. I think these are among the things the EC might be considering if they are going to expedite the polls here.
“We also have to be fair to the health authorities, police, and other public offices, as the government has to rope in officers from other states if all the elections are held simultaneously,” he said.
Meanwhile, Sabah will be holding the budget sitting on December 3 at 3pm, followed by debates from December 6 until December 9, said Kadzim.
“The forthcoming sitting will not only be about the budget, but also a couple of bills to also be tabled,” said Kadzim, adding that he has not received any motions from the Sabah reps yet.
On another development, Kadzim said the media would only be allowed to cover the sitting via livestream, not at the Sabah assembly building, adding that media clearance will depend on the advice of the Sabah Health Department. – The Vibes, Nov 17, 2021
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