Termination letters issued to Dr M and others invalid, says lawyer Haniff

The letters of termination issued by the Bersatu organising secretary to ex-premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad and four other Bersatu parliamentarians have no legal standing and are invalid, claimed lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla.

"The letters of ‘termination’ of the members dated May 28 are not valid and applicable as they were signed by Muhammad Suhaimi Yahya (in his capacity) as organising secretary of Bersatu, a position that is neither recognised nor defined in the party constitution," said Haniff in a statement last night.

He was referring to the letters issued to Bersatu chairperson Mahathir, his son and deputy president Mukhriz, Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman as well as supreme council members Maszlee Malik and Amiruddin Hamzah which stated that their party memberships have been nullified for sitting on the opposition bench during the Dewan Rakyat sitting on May 18.

According to the letters, the decision to sack them was based on Articles 10.2.2 and 10.2.3 of Bersatu's constitution which states that an individual's status as a member would be terminated with immediate effect if the member is found to have declared their intention to leave the party or has formally joined another political party.

Haniff, who is a lawyer for Mahathir, said without delving deeper into the issues raised in the termination letters from the standpoint of facts and law, Muhammad Suhaimi does not have any executive powers to make any such decision.

"Any further actions will be taken after discussions with Dr Mahathir and the others in the near future," said Haniff.

He said it should be emphasised that the letters do not directly affect the membership and positions of the five party leaders.

Joint statement

Yesterday, the five leaders in a joint statement disputed the termination and accused Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin of feeling insecure in facing the upcoming party election due to his tenuous grip on power in Putrajaya.

Disputed Bersatu secretary-general Marzuki Yahya, who is linked to the Mahathir’s faction, has also sent Muhammad Suhaimi a letter dismissing him from his post effective immediately.

In the termination letter sent by Marzuki and sighted by Malaysiakini, Marzuki said Suhaimi has gone against the Bersatu constitution by “making decisions relating the party administration and issuing membership terminations letters without my knowledge or consulting me beforehand as the chief administrator of the Bersatu headquarters and the rightful secretary-general.” - Mkini