Kota Kinabalu: Legal practitioners have dismissed a proposal to restrict state elections in Sabah and Sarawak to local parties as unworkable, arguing that such a move would contravene the Federal Constitution.
Former Sabah Law Society president Roger Chin pointed out that Article 10 of the constitution guarantees freedom of association, including the right to form and participate in political parties.
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Therefore, he said, preventing national parties from contesting in elections in Sabah or Sarawak would likely amount to a restriction of a constitutional right.
Chin, a nominated Sabah Assemblyman, also said the suggestion that only “locals” should determine electoral outcomes would likely also offend the constitution.
“The constitution does not recognise different classes of Malaysian voters. Once a Malaysian citizen is lawfully registered in a constituency, the law does not distinguish between ‘local’ and ‘non-local’ Malaysians,” he told FMT.
Former Bar Council president Salim Bashir said freedom of association, enshrined under Article 10(c) of the constitution, is an integral part to the fundamental rights enjoyed by all Malaysian citizens.
Salim said the right to free association is a vehicle for democracy and should not be curtailed arbitrarily.
“The inevitable effects of imposing restrictions on national parties from contesting in state elections will render the right of association illusory, unless it is deemed to be necessary and expedient in the interest of the security of the federation,” he said.
Chin said that if East Malaysians wanted local parties to dominate their state’s political arena, the constitution already provides the mechanism – the ballot box.
“In a democracy, political dominance should ultimately be determined by voters, not imposed through legal restrictions,” he said.
On Tuesday, Keningau MP Jeffrey Kitingan asked whether the government would consider only allowing local parties to contest in both the Sabah and Sarawak elections.
The former Sabah deputy chief minister also asked whether Putrajaya would only allow Sabah and Sarawak natives to cast votes there to preserve harmony and the federation.
In response, law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said said a significant policy change would be required to only allow local parties to participate in the state elections.
Azalina said such a policy would have implications on the constitution, the principle of democracy, and freedom of association. Restriction easily circumvented, says lawyer.
Another lawyer, Andrew Khoo, cast doubt on the effectiveness of such a restriction, saying it could be easily bypassed by any local party.
Khoo, a former co-chair of the Bar Council’s constitutional law committee, said a local party can be set up relatively easily, with local leaders, members and candidates in elections.
“But if the local party chooses to align itself with another party from another state, or with a national party, such a limitation could easily be circumvented,” he said.
Both Salim and Chin said the government is bound to face legal challenges if it introduced such a restriction, adding that any unconstitutional legislation or policy risked being struck down in court.
Chin said any political party barred from contesting elections in Sabah or Sarawak would almost certainly challenge the law in court, based on the principles of freedom of association and equality before the law.
“Given the constitutional implications, a judicial review would be almost inevitable,” he said.
