KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 — The support of six former Bersatu members of Parliament for the government aims to benefit the people in the constituencies they represent, who are in need of various forms of welfare assistance.
Speaking at a press conference in Parliament yesterday, Labuan MP Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman explained that they would be unable to offer various forms of assistance to their constituents if they continued to remain in the opposition bloc.
“As such, we decided to support the Madani government under the leadership of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as the 10th prime minister,” he said.
Apart from Suhaili, the five other MPs are Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar), Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang) dan Datuk Zulkafperi Hanapi (Tanjung Karang).
Suhaili added that all six of them were confident that their seats would not be vacated, as they did not leave Bersatu but were instead sacked from the party.
He also cited Article 49A(2)(C) of the Federal Constitution, which states that dismissal from a political party does not cause a person to cease being a Member of the House of Representatives.
“So, this clearly proves that none of the six of us left the party or switched to another party, which would subject us to Article 49A(3) of the Federal Constitution.
“We believe that there will be no vacancy in the parliamentary seats since the amendment to the Bersatu constitution was only passed on April 1, 2024, after we decided to support the Madani government,” he said.
On June 20, Bersatu chief whip Datuk Ronald Kiandee submitted a notice to Dewan Rakyat speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul, requesting that the six parliamentary seats held by the six members of the House be vacated
According to Ronald, this is in accordance with Article 49A of the Federal Constitution, following the immediate cessation of party membership for the six elected representatives. — Bernama
