PUTRAJAYA, March 4 — Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil today said the government has confirmed that no action has been taken so far against MPs who were absent during the vote on the constitutional amendment to limit the prime minister’s tenure to 10 years.
He said Deputy Prime Minister and government chief whip Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof informed the Cabinet that two of the eight government-supporting MPs who missed the vote have submitted formal explanations, while six have yet to do so.
“We have informed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and it is up to him to decide on any further action, but for now, no action has been taken,” he told reporters at the ministry’s weekly press conference here today.
On Monday, the Dewan Rakyat failed to pass the 2026 Constitutional Amendment Bill, which aimed to limit the prime minister’s term to 10 years, after it secured 146 votes — two short of the 148 needed for a two-thirds majority.
Eight government-supporting MPs were absent during the vote.
This reportedly marked the first time a bill proposing an amendment to Article 43(2)(a) of the Federal Constitution failed to proceed to a third reading and pass in the Dewan Rakyat.
