[UPDATED] PM decides no need for special parliamentary session on anti-hopping bill

KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has decided that there is no need to hold a special parliamentary sitting on the proposed anti-party hopping bill. 

Law Minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, in a statement today, said that the bill will instead be discussed during the next Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara sittings

Wan Junaidi said several factors had been considered during discussions with the prime minister, namely how government finances saved without the holding of a special sitting can be spent on other matters, such as helping the people survive. 

“On the whole, the total cost the government will have to bear is approximately RM1,077,600, excluding operating costs, if special sittings were to be held in the lower and upper Houses.” 

Noting that many MPs are participating in outstation trips that cannot be postponed due to the involvement of key stakeholders from now until next month, he added that a special parliamentary sitting can only be held in mid-July. 

He assured that the tabling of the bill according to the calendar of the upcoming Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara sessions will give ample time for lawmakers to analyse the bill before it is debated. 

The bill will be debated during the second meeting of the fifth session of Parliament starting from July 18 before being presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah for gazetting. 

“The parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) deliberating on the law will be holding a final meeting to confirm the statement that has been prepared,” he said. 

Yesterday, Wan Junaidi said the PSSC was finally able to finalise the draft bill that would outlaw party defections, adding that they had unanimously agreed to suggest to the prime minister that a special parliamentary sitting be held in the first week of July, in line with Standing Order 11(3) of the Dewan Rakyat. 

This comes close to two months after the committee was established to scrutinise the proposed law, which would also see an amendment made to the federal constitution.

The introduction of the anti-hopping law, which was initially supposed to be tabled during the March parliamentary sitting, has already been postponed several times previously. 

On Monday, Warisan deputy president Datuk Darell Leiking, who is a member of the PSSC on the anti-hopping law, urged the government to expedite the tabling of the bill as pressure escalates on Ismail Sabri from his own party Umno to call for an early general election. – The Vibes, June 9, 2022