KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will table the long-awaited anti-party hopping bill during the state assembly sitting next week.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew said she was aware of the press reports earlier this week quoting State Assembly Speaker Datuk Kadzim Yahya saying that the tabling of the Bill was not on the state assembly agenda.
"My understanding is the Sabah government will table the Bill this coming state assembly sitting, and we will support it," said the Sabah Pakatan Harapan chief when speaking to reporters here on Thursday (May 18).
"(This is) because the Chief Minister (Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor) has mentioned this (Bill). I know where the confusion comes from. (But) it is confirmed, it will be tabled.
"Pakatan will support this Bill when it is tabled in the state assembly sitting next week," she added.
As of Tuesday (May 16), Kadzim had informed the media he had yet to receive the Bill from the state government.
He said he was informed by the Sabah government that they were planning to table the Bill but could not confirm if it would be tabled in the May 22-25 sitting.
Opposition Parti Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, who was Senallang assemblyman, had submitted a Private Member’s bill to push for the anti-party hopping Bill at the next session.
Kadzim had explained that since the government was going ahead with the anti-party hopping Bill, he did not see Shafie’s Private Member’s Bill necessary.
Pressure had been building on the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah government led by Hajiji to table the Bill in line with the Federal anti-party hopping law last year.
It came into effect on Oct 5.
Sabah is constitutionally required to adopt the Federal law, and it needs to amend the state constitution to include anti-hopping laws for its assemblymen.
Despite the Federal law against MPs crossing over, the state had seen assemblymen crossing floors including Hajiji who had led an exodus of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) Sabah chapter to form a new local party Parti Gagasan Rakyat Sabah (Gagasan Rakyat).
Warisan and Sabah Barisan Nasional assemblymen had also switched sides to join parties in the GRS ruling state coalition.
