KUALA LUMPUR, July 28 — Lim Guan Eng wants Parliament to ensure that action is taken against any political party who accepts a party hopper as he feels there may still be “passive hoppers” once the anti-party hopping Bill is passed.
The Bagan MP said MPs or state assemblymen could still secretly vote against the party they belong to and not face any repercussions for that betrayal if the law they intend to pass isn’t scrutinised in detail.
“We need to make sure there are no loopholes or legal lacunae in this Bill that allows these opportunists to continue to switch parties. The focus of this amendment to the Constitution must be towards punishing MPs who jump parties on their own volition.
“If not, there will arise a situation where someone doesn’t jump parties but has left the party passively by voting for the opponent in Parliament or compete in an election against their fellow party members,” the DAP national chairman told the Dewan Rakyat today.
“If this happens, it must be considered the person in question has left the party on his own initiative and his membership must be stripped as well as their status as MPs.”
Apart from that, Lim also said the federal law regarding anti-party hopping must be extended to all states so no conflicts arise.
He said the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) must not be used as a political tool and be independent of the Prime Minister’s Office of which it sits under right now.
“We’ve seen how Opposition members of Parliament have had to change their stance after the MACC starts investigating them. Once they defect to the other side, their cases are dropped. There are many such double-standard cases and selective prosecution done by the MACC this way.
“They must be free from political influences, only then will this culture of money politics will end,” he added.
The tabling of the Constitution (Amendment) Bill (No. 3) 2022 and the Provision for the Prohibition of Members of Parliament (MPs) from Party-Hopping will be the focus of the Dewan Rakyat today.
The Bill is expected to be presented by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
