16 ex-members fail to dissolve Umno

 

Sixteen former Umno members did not succeed in their legal bid to dissolve the political party.

The Federal Court today dismissed the appeal by the former party members against the Registrar of Societies’ (ROS) greenlight for Umno to delay party elections.

The 16 seek for the ROS to quash its decision in March 2018 to allow Umno to extend its party elections until April 2019; to investigate the complaints made and reply to them; and also, for a dissolution of the party.

On April 27, 2018, the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed their judicial review leave application against the ROS.

The High Court ruled that Section 18C of the Societies Act applied, where members cannot bring party disputes to court. Later, the Court of Appeal upheld the lower court’s ruling.

In reading out the unanimous decision by the five-member Federal Court bench, its chairperson Chief Judge of Malaya Azahar Mohamed ruled that the matter has become academic as Umno had already conducted party elections since the filing of the legal action.

“The political party in question has already completed all of its elections at all levels. Under these circumstances, this is now an academic ground,” he said.

A short time after the historic 14th general election on May 9, 2018, Umno conducted its party polls on June 30, which saw former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi snag the party president’s post. 

The 16 former Umno members’ legal action was filed in April 2018.

Azahar pointed out that the court will not interfere in the internal affairs of a political party and its members, which at the heart of it is contractual in nature.

“The actual dispute, in this case, revolves around the issue pertaining to the extension of time for a political party to conduct internal elections.

“It concerns a political dispute between members of a political party, in which the relationship is contractual in nature.

“In this context, the general principle is the court will not interfere with the internal affairs of a political party as it is a domestic concern of parties and their members.

“The question of ousting the court’s jurisdiction in the dispute of a political party does not arise,” he said, adding that the apex bench made no order to costs.

The other members of the bench were Federal Court judges Abdul Rahman Sebli, Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, Mary Lim Thiam Suan and Rhodzariah Bujang.

Previously, the Federal Court heard submissions over whether a law, barring the courts from hearing disputes linked to political parties, applies in the present appeal. 

The 16 former Umno members, who are the appellants in the matter, were represented by counsel Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla.

The two respondents, namely the ROS and Umno, were represented by senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan and lawyer Mohd Hafarizam Harun respectively. - Mkini