Experts say it’s proper to amend constitution, then make new law

 

Law lecturers Shamrahayu Ab Aziz and Muhammad Fathi Yusof said the amendment was needed to ensure that a proposed anti-hopping law will not be held invalid.

KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s decision not to table the anti-hopping bill at the Dewan Rakyat on Monday, but to table a constitutional amendment instead reflects a meticulous approach, say constitutional and legal experts.

The proposed constitutional amendment will empower Parliament to pass laws that will prohibit MPs or state assembly members from switching parties.

The government has said such a law will be tabled for debate at a later date.

Law lecturer professor Shamrahayu Ab Aziz of the International Islamic University said the government’s move to amend the Federal Constitution was driven by a Kelantan case in 1992 in which an anti-hopping provision was ruled unconstitutional.

The then Supreme Court ruled that an assemblyman can leave his party and switch to another party because he has the right to freedom of association.

She said if an anti-hopping bill was to be enacted first, it would be held to be invalid for contradicting current provisions of the Federal Constitution, which protects freedom of association.

If the government were to introduce the Anti-Party Hopping Bill first, “the essence of which is to cause an MP to lose his seat, (this) means they do not have freedom of association,” Bernama quoted her as saying.

Freedom of association is a basic right for all citizens protected under Article 10. However the constitution allows Parliament to restrict the right on security grounds. The new amendment will allow Parliament to pass laws to restrict the right of elected representatives regarding membership of a political party.

Associate professor Muhammad Fathi Yusof of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia said the proposed amendment should include exemptions on freedom of association to avoid legal implications in the future.

He said the move to ban party hopping should be done before the next general election.

“The effort to implement the anti-hopping law has been going on for quite some time and we really hope the government takes immediate steps so that it can be accelerated, especially before the next general election.

“Party hopping affects the mandate given by the people at an election, and also opens the space for corruption among political leaders,” he said, according to Bernama.

Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia lecturer Intan Nadia Ghulam Khan said there is a need to amend the constitution before the anti-hopping bill is tabled so that it does not conflict with the Federal Constitution.

The government has said the anti-hopping bill would not be tabled at the special Dewan Rakyat sitting on Monday. Instead, the Constitution (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2022 will be tabled for debate. It provides Parliament the power to make laws on party memberships of MPs and state assembly members.

The proposed law to deal with party hopping will be tabled for debate at another date, the government has said. - FMT