Unfair for Bersatu six to lose seats after party's constitution amended, says Mas Ermieyati

Unfair for Bersatu six to lose seats after party's constitution amended, says Mas Ermieyati

KUALA LUMPUR: The rogue Bersatu MPs who pledged their support for the Prime Minister should not lose their seats even if the party amends its constitution as these amendments should not operate retrospectively, says Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin.

The Bersatu women’s wing deputy chief said the upcoming EGM to amend the party constitution to prevent members from breaking ranks, should not operate retrospectively.

“As far as I understand, the amendment should not have a retrospective effect. I think the law would be unfair if it acted retrospectively,” she said when met at sidelines of Parliament on Thursday (Feb 29).

She was asked if the six MPs would immediately lose their seats following the amendments of Bersatu’s constitution this Saturday (March 2).

Mas Ermieyati clarified that any amendment to the party constitution this weekend would have to be submitted to the Registrar of Societies (RoS) for approval before coming into effect.

Earlier, two Bersatu MPs – Bukit Gantang MP Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal and Gua Musang MP Mohd Azizi Abu Naim – said they were willing to vacate their seats if the amendments to the party constitution required them do so for supporting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

On Feb 14, The Star reported that Bersatu is scheduled to hold an EGM on March 2 to prevent any more members from breaking ranks by amending the party constitution to automatically expel elected representatives who go rogue.

The amendments to the party constitution were referring to the action of the six MPs that voiced support to the Prime Minister and to close any loopholes preventing any members from pledging support to the government.

The other four MPs were Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar), Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan) and the last one is Tanjong Karang MP Dr Zulkafperi Hanapi who pledged his support on Jan 24.

All the six Bersatu MPs claimed that their support for the government was to support their constituents and that they would remain loyal to the party.

Despite pledging their support to the government from the Opposition bloc, The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said, on Dec 8 last year, thatsuch a move does not violate the Anti-Party Hopping Law as the MPs did not quit their political parties.

On Feb 17, Suhaili in a response to the party’s EGM to amend the constitution, said that it is up to Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul and the courts to decide on the fate of the six Bersatu MPs who pledged support for the Prime Minister to vacate their seats or otherwise.