THERE is political disquiet in the wake of the six Bersatu MPs who shifted their political allegiance to the Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration, but still insist on retaining their parliamentary seats.

This is despite Bersatu stating recently that the lawmakers had ceased to be members after failing to respond to a notice to confirm their loyalty. In short, they had forfeited their seats.

The six MPs are Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang), Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), Zulkafperi Hanapi (Tanjong Karang), Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar) and Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan).

Temperatures rose when parliamentary Speaker Johari Abdul rejected Bersatu’s attempt to vacate the seats of the members of parliament (MPs) concerned.

He, however, reserved his decision on Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman who is suing Bersatu in his bid to declare his dismissal from the party as invalid.

Critics argued that the speaker’s decision runs counter to the spirit of the Anti-party-hopping law (APHL) that was enacted in October 2022, which aims to prohibit MPs from switching parties or pledging support to another political party.

Bersatu’s forfeiture rule is similar to that applied by DAP and Umno, which means that those rules are now also likely defective.

These rules were meant to plug a loophole in the APHL where MPs who go against their parties could still retain their seats provided they do not quit.

What is worrying is that such change of political allegiance has serious implications, one of which is that it could lead to political instability, erosion of democracy and economic disruption. 

It’s still fresh on our minds the events that unfolded as a result of some MPs jumping ship in the Sheraton Move, which subsequently saw the Pakatan Harapan government being brought down to its knees in 2020.

In those moments of political uncertainty, Malaysians on the sidelines bore witness to certain political leaders scurrying to collect the much-valued statutory declarations from lawmakers to determine who had the majority in parliament and could then rule the country. 

It was also annoying to see political leaders exhibiting their lack of mathematical skills in their frenzy to show they “had the numbers”. In certain cases, their counting somehow didn’t add up. 

This is apart from horse-trading that presumably was conducted among politicians behind closed doors, much to the chagrin of the constituents concerned. 

This country cannot afford to be distracted again by such circus acts. An otherwise stable and confident government has the important duty to strengthen the economy and build a better nation.

In the meantime, the common people, particularly those in the B40 bracket, are struggling to make ends meet in the face of the high cost of living, inflation, rising debts etc.

As indicated above, it has been acknowledged by politicians, including Anwar, that there is indeed a weakness in the current APHL. So, it has to be fixed as soon as possible.

Unless the loophole in the APHL is plugged, this inadequate law may come back to bite the sitting government in future should there be enough parliamentarians who switch sides to the opposition.

It was said that the six MPs who deserted Bersatu to support Anwar was because they wanted adequate development funds for their constituencies. If this is true, then this problem should also be fixed. 

The political environment should not be made compelling or conducive for politicians to jump ship.

It should also not make it hard for voters to ascertain what political stripes these frogs really wear. – July 16, 2024.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.