Motion on redelineation of electoral boundaries tabled at Dewan Rakyat only
PUTRAJAYA: The motion on the redelineation of electoral boundaries will be tabled at the Dewan Rakyat only and need not go to the Dewan Negara level, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Home Minister, said the motion which would be tabled by the Head of the Parliamentary Council only needed a simple majority which is 111 out of the 220 Members of Parliament.
Jelebu (Negeri Sembilan) MP Datuk Zainudin Ismail died in December last year and Paya Besar (Pahang) MP Datuk Seri Abdul Manan Ismail died last month.
“So I am confident the BN (Barisan Nasional) will get more than that as the coalition has 132 Members of Parliament.
“As soon as the motion is passed at the Dewan Rakyat and receives the assent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for gazetting, it becomes a motion and need not be taken to the Dewan Negara,”he said at the Luncheon Talk With Editors-in-Chief and Publication Permit Holders at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), here yesterday.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Barisan Nasional Chief Whip said the Dewan Rakyat will sit from March 5 to April 5 while Dewan Negara will begin sitting from April 16 to 30.
Ahmad Zahid said the motion on the redelineation of electoral boundaries would be tabled after the debate on the speech by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had been completed and other acts had been tabled including the Supplementary Supply Bill.
“That's all that I can say. This is official information that we know, the date of dissolution I don't know, and the polling date too I do not know,” he said.
Last Saturday, Ahmad Zahid said the government had yet to decide on the date of tabling the motion on the redelineation of electoral boundaries.
He will have a meeting with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and the Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia to discuss the date for tabling the motion.
Also present at the Luncheon Talk were Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed, Home Ministry Secretary-General Datuk Seri Alwi Ibrahim, Chairman of the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) Datuk Seri Azman Ujang and Bernama General Manager Datuk Zulkefli Salleh.