Anti-hopping law effective from tomorrow, says Wan Junaidi

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 — Enforcement of the constitutional amendment prohibiting the political defection of elected representatives will begin tomorrow, said Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.

The minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) said Yang di-Pertuan Agong has agreed to this enforcement date for the previously gazetted amendment.

“His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong has approved the effective date of the Constitution Act (Amendment) (No. 3) 2022 for October 5, 2022 in accordance with Section 1(2) and Section 1(3) of Act A1663.

“After this, any MP who changes party will fall (under this law)," he told reporters in a press conference at the Parliament building here today.

As for the states, Wan Junaidi said the prime minister will issue a circular which orders all states to have streamlined laws using the amendments which have been enacted at the federal level.

“Although Nordin Salleh’s case review decision has been overturned, the effect is still there.

“We don’t want one state to have this pattern and another state to have another patten and that’s why the prime minister will send a circular to all states to ensure the law is streamlined,” he said.

Informally named the anti-party hopping law, the amendment was mooted as a bipartisan response to the so-called “Sheraton Move” of 2020, when political defections caused the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government.

The collapse led to Perikatan Nasional coming to power unelected before the coalition was itself forced to yield last year to the Barisan Nasional that was voted out in the 14th general election.

The law was also part of the memorandum of understanding signed between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and the PH coalition.

Specifically, it is an amendment of the Federal Constitution, which includes the addition of Article 49A (pertaining to members of Parliament) and a change to the Eighth Schedule (pertaining to state assemblymen).

The new amendments will cause MPs and state assemblymen to lose their seats if they switch parties, or if they join one after being elected as an independent.

There are three exceptions, however, namely the dissolution or cancellation of the registration of the politician’s party; the expulsion of the politician from his party; or the politician resigning from his party upon becoming Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat or his respective state assembly.