No vote today, anti-hopping bill to be referred to select committee

KUALA LUMPUR – The Dewan Rakyat will not vote on the proposed constitutional amendment on the anti-hopping law in today’s special sitting after all.

Instead, MPs will only be debating today, with the amendment expected to be put up for voting in a separate sitting later.

This is to allow a special select committee to further deliberate on the matter, with the government also agreeing in principle, at the eleventh hour, to make further amendments to the federal constitution, including abolishing Article 48(6).

The article stipulates that a person who resigns from the lower House shall be disqualified from being an MP for a period of five years.

By removing this article, MPs who are removed from their seats, once the anti-hopping law comes into force, will still be eligible to contest in an election.

Law minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, in tabling the proposed constitutional amendment to Article 10 today, said the government has decided to defer the amendment in order to refer the matter to the select committee.

The amendment seeks to include an enabling clause in the constitution to allow for a specific anti-hopping legislation to be enacted.

The decision to defer the voting for the Article 10 amendment was made following a meeting this morning between the government and Pakatan Harapan representatives chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

“Three matters were agreed, the first being ironing out the amendment (to Article 10), pertaining to what defines party-hopping.

“Second, we agreed on the proposal to abolish Article 48(6) as well as other constitutional provisions deemed necessary. Finally, we agreed to enact a specific bill pertaining to anti-hopping.” – The Vibes, April 11, 2022

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