Court to decide on Nenggiri vacancy

On June 19, Mohd Amar (centre) confirmed the Nenggiri state seat was vacant after the Kelantan state legislative assembly received a written notice according to Clause (3) Article 31A of the Constitution of the State from Nenggiri assemblyman Mohd Azizi Abu Naim, on June 13.

SHAH ALAM - Although the Election Commission (EC) will hold a special meeting to discuss important dates for the by-election of the N43 Nenggiri State Legislative Assembly (DUN) in Kelantan this Friday, the final decision on whether a by-election needs to be held will be made by the court.

EC former deputy chairman Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said he acknowledged that Kelantan state assembly speaker Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah has the right to announce an unexpected vacancy in the Nenggiri seat, as stated in Clause (3) Article 31A of the Kelantan State Constitution.

However, Wan Ahmad said former Nenggiri assemblyman Mohd Azizi Abu Naim also has the right to file a judicial review application in court regarding the decision made by the Kelantan state assembly speaker.

"In such cases, the court needs to promptly hear and decide whether Azizi remains the Nenggiri assemblyman or if there is an unexpected vacancy in the seat, thereby facilitating the EC’s process of holding an election if necessary," he said.

Wan Ahmad made these comments in response to Amar's announcement that the Nenggiri assembly seat was vacant.

This announcement came after the Kelantan state assembly speaker received a written notice on June 13, in accordance with Clause (3) Article 31A of the Kelantan State Constitution, from an assemblyman and a representative of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) regarding Azizi's party membership.

Following that, the EC will hold a special meeting for the Nenggiri by-election on June 28 to discuss the election process.

Wan Ahmad believed that the Kelantan state assembly speaker made this decision based on his own interpretation and understanding of the law.

This situation was unprecedented in Malaysia since the Constitution (Amendment) Act (No. 3) 2022 (Act A1663) which prohibits Members of Parliament from switching parties, also known as the Anti-Party Hopping Act, was enforced on Oct 5, 2022.

As a result, Wan Ahmad explained that those affected by the announcement made by the Kelantan state assembly speaker can file for judicial review or challenge the case in court to confirm the legitimacy of the decision.

However, he said that the EC must hold a special meeting within 10 days of receiving the vacancy notice from the Kelantan state assembly speaker to discuss important dates for the Nenggiri state by-election.

"This meeting is necessary to determine important dates for the election such as nomination day, campaign period, early voting register, polling day and so on.

"Even if the EC has already held the special meeting and the court hearing is not yet complete, the EC special meeting must still proceed.

"This is because they still need to set important dates to conduct the election to fill the vacancy. However, if the court has already made a final decision, then the EC must respect it," he said.

Azizi, who is Gua Musang MP was among the six MPs and assemblyman from Bersatu who lost their membership for declaring support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari.

Azizi contested on the Pas ticket and won the Gua Musang parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election in November 2022, while he won the Nenggiri state seat in the state election in August, last year.

However, his position and that of the other five as MPs remained unresolved until the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat Tan Sri Johari Abdul, makes a decision.

The other MPs who supported Anwar were Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang); Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan); Datuk Dr Zulkafperi Hanapi (Tanjong Karang); Zahari Kechik (Jeli); and Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar).