PETALING JAYA: A notice on the vacancies of six parliamentary seats held by rogue Bersatu members has been sent to the Dewan Rakyat Speaker’s Office, says Datuk Seri Dr Ronald Kiandee.
The Bersatu parliamentary whip said the notice regarding the Jeli, Gua Musang, Bukit Gantang, Kuala Kangsar, Tanjong Karang and Labuan seats was received by the Speaker’s Office yesterday.
“A precedent was set where the Nenggiri seat in the Kelantan state assembly was declared vacant by its Speaker in accordance with the state’s laws, which are aligned with the Federal Constitution.
“Hence, according to Article 49A of the Federal Constitution, the Speaker must confirm there is an unexpected vacancy within 21 days of receiving the notice,” Kiandee said in a statement yesterday.
He claimed that confirmation of the unexpected vacancies must be respected in line with Section 18C of the Societies Act, indicating that any decision by a registered political party is “final and conclusive”.
The Beluran MP is also confident that Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul would want to ensure that the legislative body is free of political influence while upholding the law.
“He has no choice but to declare the six parliamentary seats vacant and notify the Election Commission so that by-elections may commence,” Kiandee said.The Nenggiri seat, held by Mohd Azizi Abu Naim, was declared vacant by Kelantan state assembly Speaker Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah after the former lost his Bersatu membership.Mohd Azizi, who is also Gua Musang MP, had failed to respond to an official letter requiring him to pledge his loyalty to the party by May 31.
Although he won the Nenggiri seat under the PAS banner, Mohd Azizi held a Bersatu membership.
Aside from Mohd Azizi, Bersatu earlier in the month declared that five other MPs and a Selangor assemblyman also ceased being party members after failing to respond to letters requiring them to pledge loyalty to the party.
The representatives are Bukit Gantang MP Syed Abu Hussin Syed Abdul Fasal, Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar), Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan), Datuk Dr Zulkafperi Hanafi (Tanjong Karang) and Selat Klang assemblyman Datuk Abdul Rashid Asari.
This comes after Bersatu successfully amended its constitution where party members will automatically cease to be members if they go against the party’s decisions, and its elected representatives must subsequently vacate their seats.
When contacted, a representative from the Dewan Rakyat Speaker’s Office confirmed having received the notice from Kiandee.
