PETALING JAYA: A lawyer has called for a constitutional amendment to make it mandatory for a prime minister newly appointed by the king to test his majority support in Parliament.
Bastian Pius Vendargon said the government could insert a clause in the Federal Constitution to compel the appointee to submit to a confidence vote in the Dewan Rakyat.
Alternatively, he said, separate legislation could be enacted, or the Dewan Rakyat Standing Orders amended, to make the vote mandatory on the first day of proceedings when the House is in session.
“The constitution can be amended since the unity government has a two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat,” he told FMT.
Vendargon said former prime minister Hussein Onn was the first to submit to a confidence vote in 1976 despite his Barisan Nasional coalition having a strong majority.
In contrast, Muhyiddin Yassin did not test his support when it came under scrutiny following his takeover of the top executive post in February 2020, he said.
“Parliament was shut down and Muhyiddin himself was ousted from power 17 months later.”
Vendargon was commenting after Beruas MP Ngeh Koo Ham urged the government to enact a law which would allow the Dewan Rakyat to determine who becomes prime minister.
When debating the king’s royal address on Tuesday, Ngeh said the law would do away with claims by some parties that they have the numbers to form the government as reflected in statutory declarations.
Meanwhile, lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdullah said the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s constitutional duty to appoint a prime minister, as provided under Article 43(2)(a) of the constitution, should be retained.
However, he agreed the floor of the Dewan Rakyat may be used to determine if the prime minister has majority support.
Article 43(2)(a) of the Federal Constitution states that the king may appoint a prime minister “who in his judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority” of MPs in the Dewan Rakyat.
“The legislature is the venue to determine if the appointed prime minister has numerical support, but not the place to elect the head of government,” Haniff said, adding that Ngeh’s proposal would disrupt the existing constitutional scheme.
Citing the Sheraton Move which led to Muhyiddin taking over as prime minister, he said Malaysians had issues with the lack of maturity among politicians and the insincerity of their political objectives.
“Any suggestions for a change of process and formula for the appointment of the prime minister cannot be done willy-nilly by passing an Act of Parliament. Any legislation that is inconsistent with the constitution will be null and void.”
Meanwhile, lawyer Fahri Azzat hit out at Ngeh, saying politicians should understand the constitution and its history before going public with their proposals.
“(Ngeh’s) proposed legislation is inconsistent with Article 43(2)(a). He makes no mention of how his legislation would work in the face of that provision,” he said.
Fahri added that the DAP MP’s suggestion brings into sharp focus the need for elected representatives to understand the national charter and to act according to it. - FMT
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