KOTA KINABALU: Sabah's anti-party hopping law must be comprehensive to ensure that assemblymen do not exploit loopholes to cross the floor, says Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) president Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili (pic).
He said "political jumping" was synonymous with Sabah politicians, some of whom would seek out creative ways to jump from one party to another.
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As such, the proposed law to be adopted in Sabah should take into account different possibilities that might provide an excuse for assemblymen to leave the parties on whose ticket they won their seats, he added.
"I am sure they will be creative in finding ways or exploiting loopholes to jump out of parties," he said in his speech at PBS' 38th anniversary dinner here on Sunday (March 5).
Ongkili, whose speech was read by party deputy president Datuk Joachim Gunsalan, said those drafting the state's anti-hopping law must think out of the box to put an airtight law in place.
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The PBS-led state government had put in place an anti-defection law in the 1980s but it ran afoul of the right to freedom of association under the Federal Constitution.
The law was repealed by the Barisan Nasional-led state government after it toppled PBS following a spate of defections in 1994.
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Over the last two years, about half of the assemblymen in the 79-member Sabah assembly had left the parties for which they won their seats in the September 2020 state election.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, who left Sabah Bersatu with its assemblymen and leaders to lead local-based Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah, has said that the state cabinet will decide on the anti-hopping law.
