All eyes on speaker's decision as Anwar govt braces for more Malay rejection

While the power to determine the status of seats held by Bersatu MPs who have chosen to support the government lies with the speaker, the final decision on the matter is still subject to the Federal Constitution, former Dewan Rakyat speaker Azhar Harun says as the coalition government faces the possibility of more humiliating defeats in predominantly Malay seats. 

Azhar said the speaker, after receiving a written notice from any MP regarding a vacancy, must establish within 21 days whether such vacancy exists in accordance with Article 49A.

"The question here is whether those MPs have ceased to be members of the political party of which they were members when they contested the 15th general election," Azhar, who served as speaker from July 2020 until the last election, told MalaysiaNow.

Article 49A states that an elected representative will lose his seat if he resigns from his political party, ceases to become a member, or joins another party after his election to the Dewan Rakyat.

A total of six MPs from Bersatu had declared their support for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim while stating that they would remain with their party. 

Bersatu subsequently amended its constitution to read that those who are out of line with the party's position will cease to be members, thereby causing them to lose their status as MPs. 

The six MPs who expressed support for Anwar are Zulkafperi Hanafi (Tanjong Karang), Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul (Bukit Gantang), Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan), Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), and Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar).

Selat Klang state assemblyman Abdul Rashid Asari also declared his support for Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.

Azhar, a lawyer by training, said that if their membership ceases in line with Bersatu's amended constitution, their cases would come under Article 49A(1)(A)(II).

This provision states that the speaker must declare a seat vacant if its elected representative loses his party membership.

Azhar said the next step would be for any MP to notify the speaker about the vacancy, as mentioned in Article 49A(III).

MalaysiaNow's query on whether such a notice has been sent to the speaker has yet to receive a response from Bersatu secretary-general Hamzah Zainudin.

Dewan Rakyat speaker Johari Abdul did not respond, either.

Notice still not given

In 2022, the government of then prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob backed the anti-party hopping law in fulfilling its agreement with then opposition Pakatan Harapan (PH).

The six MPs from Bersatu had taken advantage of what was considered a legal loophole in expressing support for Anwar while stating that they remained party members. 

This caused Bersatu's move to amend its constitution, which was approved by the Registrar of Societies.

As of yesterday, the MPs who defected had yet to receive notice that they were no longer members, according to one of them, Syed Abu Hussin.

MalaysiaNow understands that the delay in formally informing the speaker of the seat vacancies is a deliberate move by Bersatu to allow time for the MPs to retract their stand and return to the party fold.

Following the changes in the party's constitution, Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin had said if the six continued to support the prime minister, their seats would be vacated.

Syed Abu Hussin, the fifth MP to declare support for Anwar, previously said that he would rather support the government than continue to be with Bersatu in order to remain as an MP.

His position has remained unchanged. 

"We are ready to face any possibility including vacating our seats if that's the reality we have to accept," he said in February.

Malay rejection continues

Observers nevertheless predict that the PH-Barisan Nasional coalition will be dealt another round of defeat in the event of more by-elections as the government continues to struggle with a deficit in Malay support. 

This view is largely based on the fact that the majorities obtained by Bersatu, which contested under Perikatan Nasional (PN), were large despite the party facing an Umno which had yet to embrace PH.

In Bukit Gantang, which has 76% Malay voters, Syed Abu Hussin won by a majority of 12,756 votes, defeating candidates from Umno, Amanah and Pejuang.

In Kuala Kangsar where 70% of the voters are Malays, Iskandar defeated both Umno and Amanah candidates.

Likewise in Tanjong Karang, Zulkafperi defeated candidates from Umno and Muda, the latter at that time part of PN, in a constituency with some 73% Malays.

In Labuan, where Malay and Bumiputera groups make up more than 80%, Suhaili emerged the winner in a six-cornered contest.

Two other Bersatu men, Zahari in Jeli and Azizi in Gua Musang, both contested on a PAS ticket.

Zahari left his three rivals far behind with a majority of more than 12,000 votes while in Gua Musang, Azizi was considered a giantslayer after defeating Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, who represented the Orang Asli area for more than four decades.