KUALA LUMPUR – Law minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said there is no need for the government to impose new conditions on candidates in the upcoming general election (GE15), including those who are currently facing court cases.
Responding to a recent proposal by Central PAS Ulama Council chief Datuk Ahmad Yahaya, Wan Junaidi said the current conditions for fielding candidates are sufficient and in line with Article 48(1)(e) of the federal constitution, which disqualifies candidates who are sentenced to more than one-year imprisonment or a fine above RM2,000.
Wan Junaidi said this in response to Ahmad’s proposal to tighten the election rules, including barring those who are facing trials related to wrongdoing, misappropriation, and graft.
“Therefore, to consolidate democracy, there is no need to introduce new conditions to prevent any individual from contesting, for example, to amend laws for individuals whose cases are still being heard in court to be disqualified,” Wan Junaidi said in a statement.
Yesterday, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun said Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s loss of position as Pekan MP following his graft conviction will only take place after a petition seeking pardon for him has been decided upon with a rejection.
Azhar said the petition was filed by the former prime minister on September 2, well within the 14-day period after the decision of the Federal Court to uphold his conviction, as required under Article 42 of the federal constitution.
The speaker said that the loss of his parliamentary membership will therefore only take effect as soon as the petition issue is settled, and in the event that it is rejected.
Meanwhile, Wan Junaidi said his view on the matter falls in line with Article 48(5) in relation to the naming, selection, or appointment of any individual in any parliamentary committee.
“Therefore, I am of the view that there is no need to add any other condition to tighten the existing candidacy conditions,” he said.
“If there are more additions, it will bring us back to the era of the ‘90s, when candidacy was complicated.
“It is more appropriate for us to refer to existing laws, which are sufficient and complete, in the process of fielding candidates in elections.”
Wan Junaidi added that MPs would not be removed from their posts unless they contravened Article 48(4) of the federal constitution, where they have received sentences without any pardon.
He added that if the process of seeking pardon had failed, the membership of the representative in parliament would be automatically terminated, in line with Article 48(4)(c) of the federal constitution. – The Vibes, September 6, 2022
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