Passing of Anti-Party Hopping Bill is for the people - Hajiji

KOTA KINABALU - Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor thanked all 75 members of the Sabah Legislative State Assembly who supported the Sabah State Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2023 on anti-party hopping.

He said the approval of the bill with the support of all assemblymen present at the Sabah State Legislative Assembly session today showed that the elected representatives of the state were practising the principle of the assembly in the interest of the people and the state of Sabah.

He said the approved constitutional amendment will be gazetted within a few days or weeks because it needs to be presented and examined by Sabah Governor Tun Juhar Mahiruddin.

"Thankfully the state assembly session has been held and I am grateful that the anti-party hopping amendment has the support of all parties. With the passage of the constitutional amendment, we will no longer have to worry about the existence of assemblymen who will jump party in the future.

"This is in line with the anti-hopping law which was introduced at the federal level," he said at a press conference after the legislature’s sitting at Sabah State Legislative Assembly Building here today.

The motion for the bill which was tabled by Hajiji today received the support of 75 assemblymen while four assemblymen did not attend the third reading; in the second reading, there was a bloc vote on Clause 2 of the bill which saw 61 assemblymen agreeing to delete Article 6(7) from the State Constitution, 14 assemblymen disagreed, while four assemblymen were absent.

Article 6(7), states that the leader of a political party that has won a majority of the elected seats of the Legislative Assembly in a general election and who is a member of the assembly shall be the one who is likely to command the confidence of the majority.

Sabah has a total of 79 assemblymen of which 73 are elected while six are appointed. - BERNAMA