SEPTEMBER 14 — It wasn’t long ago that a suggestion was made for a new law that would keep the government of the day in office for a full five-year term.

Who made the suggestion?

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

When was it made?

January 13, 2024 – exactly 32 months to this day.

The next day, Project SAMA expressed its support for the suggestion.

The NGO, founded by former Coalition of Free and Fair Elections (Bersih) figures, advocates institutional reform to enhance political stability and accountability in Malaysia.

Project SAMA in fact urged the Government to enact a Fixed Term Parliament Act (FTPA). According to it, FTPA “is both a manifesto promise of PH in GE15 and one of the reforms called for by 33 NGOs and 52 individuals in the 2024 new year message”.

Hours later, Pontian MP and Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan threw his support for a proposed law for the federal government to run for a full five-year term without a general election being called earlier.

Then, before even darkness fell on the day, de facto law minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said confirmed that the Government was considering an FTPA and would be conducting an in-depth study, an impact study and obtaining public opinion for the Cabinet to assess its implementation.

“The fixed-term parliamentary system is also practised by many countries to ensure political and economic stability and to prevent any seizure of power that is harmful to the country’s parliamentary democracy,” the minister said in a statement.

Two months later, in a parliamentary reply to a question whether the Government planned to enact an FTPA, Azalina said an in-depth study stage was still being carried out by the Legal Affairs Division, Prime Minister’s Department (BHEUU JPM). The study included an impact study that also took into account the views of the results of engagement sessions with stakeholders and the public regarding the introduction of an FTPA.

Yet on Friday (September 11), Ahmad Zahid, as president of Umno, called for the 16th General Election (GE16) to be held as soon as possible, saying the time had come for Barisan Nasional (BN) to seek a fresh mandate to lead the country.

A flip flop?

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.