Will four MPs lose their seats?

PETALING JAYA: It will be an uphill task for Bersatu in trying to unseat the four Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) MPs using the anti-hopping law, say some lawyers, but others are not so sure.

A lawyer familiar with the matter said six Sabah Bersatu candidates had actually joined GRS as direct members in October and then contested in the 15th General Election in November on the GRS ticket.

Four of them won.

The lawyer noted that GRS chairman Datuk Hajiji Noor himself admitted that they had a deal to support Barisan Nasional for the prime minister’s post.

“Unfortunately, Barisan did not win,” said the lawyer who declined to be named.

The lawyer said it would be difficult for Bersatu to use Article 49A of the Federal Constitution – better known as the anti-party hopping law – against the four MPs.

“It had always been assumed that the four were initially supporting Bersatu. However, they had taken into consideration the deal with Barisan before deciding to contest as direct GRS members.

“The four were working towards total independence from the national leadership to allow themselves to decide who they should support after the election,” said the lawyer.

Sabah Law Society president Roger Chin said the question to be asked is whether the four MPs officially joined GRS in October.

“One must note that in the lead-up to nomination day and polling day, there was no mention of them being GRS members in October,” he said.

Chin added that statements issued by the four MPs made it appear that they were still Bersatu members.

“When did they become GRS members and is that factual? All these issues need to be considered,” he said.

“(Which party) they were a member of when they were nominated could be the main determinant rather than which symbol they stood under.”

Chin also said there appeared to be ambiguity in Article 49A on the definition of “member of a political party”, as it did not mention whether it meant an individual party like Umno or a coalition like Barisan or GRS.

“What is a political party?” he queried, referring to Article 49A.

Lawyer Tengku Datuk Fuad Ahmad argued otherwise, saying that the definition of political party under Article 49A meant that the party of which the person is a member, under whose symbol he contested in, and to which party the candidate is elected.

“All six candidates were direct members of GRS prior to GE15, and it was by virtue of said direct membership that four were later elected. The four elected GRS MPs contested under the GRS logo as direct members and not because they were members of Bersatu,” he added.

He said the four MPs would cease to be GRS members if the anti-party hopping provisions in Article 49A were to be applied.

“This is the same political party under which they contested in GE15 and to which they were elected,” added Fuad.

In GE15, six candidates from Bersatu contested in Sabah under the GRS logo in Kudat, Papar, Sipitang, Ranau, Batu Sapi and Semporna.

The four who won were Papar MP Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali, Batu Sapi MP Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, Sipitang MP Datuk Matbali Musah and Ranau MP Datuk Jonathan Yassin.

Fuad also argued that Article 49A(2)(C) renders the anti-party hopping law impotent as both Bersatu and Umno’s party constitutions provide for an immediate expulsion from the party if a member joins another party.

He added that under that Article, an MP would not lose his seat if the only reason he ceased to be a party member was due to their expulsion from their political party.

“Under the Umno constitution, a member is expelled from the party if he hops to Bersatu. The only reason why that MP would cease being an Umno member is because his party membership was terminated. If this is so, then under Article 49A(2)(C), the MP will not lose his seat,” said Fuad.

On Thursday, Bersatu vice-president Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee said the party had sent a notice to the Dewan Rakyat about the vacancies of the four parliamentary seats occupied by its former leaders.

Kiandee also said that Hajiji had on Nov 2 made a public announcement that six (of 13) GRS candidates were from Bersatu.