KUCHING, Aug 8 — Datuk Willie Mongin should resign as MP because he was among those who voted for the passing of the anti-party hopping law in Parliament recently, said Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen.
He said what Willie did was ‘just morally wrong’.
Chong, who is Stampin MP and Padungan assemblyman, believed that Willie could do what he did because the anti-party hopping law would come into full effect after the gazette of notification and definitely before the 15th general election (GE15).
Moreover, he said Willie took advantage of the situation where the amendments had not fully come into force.
“Although legally he is entitled to (do) it, I think all of us know that it is morally wrong,” he told reporters when met at DAP Sarawak headquarters here yesterday, where the party held a presentation of incentives to outstanding students who scored in their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2021 examinations.
Adding on, Chong said Willie should not have taken advantage of the loophole in the law and change parties after having won Puncak Borneo in the GE14 back in 2018.
“If Willie is a man of honour, he should resign because you should not take advantage of the loophole in the law and then, do something that is morally wrong; you also voted for the passing of the anti-hopping (law, and) the constitutional amendments.
“Be a true ‘Yang Berhormat’ (elected representative) — resign from the post,” said Chong.
Willie has been accepted as a Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) member.
Speaking at a press conference in PBB headquarters here on Saturday, party president Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said the supreme council had decided to accept Willie’s application to join PBB.
“Willie has been accepted as a member. That’s all. No conditions are attached to his membership and he is just an ordinary member,” said Abang Johari after chairing a PBB supreme council meeting on Saturday.
Willie won Puncak Borneo under the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) banner in 2018, but he quit the party in a political crisis dubbed as the ‘Sheraton Move’ in 2020, which led to the fall of Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led federal government.
Last month, the Dewan Rakyat passed the Anti-Party Hopping Bill by making amendments to the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill (No. 3) 2022 on Provisions Preventing Members of Parliament from Switching Parties.
The Bill required two-thirds majority votes from the MPs in Dewan Rakyat, with a total of 209 agreeing to it, while 11 were not in attendance.
The MPs voted for the constitutional amendment to ban any members of Parliament from jumping parties. No MPs voted against it.
The Anti-Party Hopping Bill was mooted by the government and opposition MPs after the infamous Sheraton Move in early 2020, where several MPs ‘jumped ship’ from their respective political parties and caused the collapse of the PH-led government.
The Bill was also part of the memorandum of understanding signed between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and those from the PH coalition. — Borneo Post Online
