Redelineation: What next?
> Constitution allows PM to table draft in Parliament
PETALING JAYA: With the deadline for objections to the Election Commission’s (EC) proposed redelineation exercise ending tomorrow, many are wondering what the next step would be.
According to Bersih 2.0 steering committee member Jay Jay Denis, the EC is expected to hold public meetings to get feedback from those objecting the proposals.
“Three constituents who submitted objections will be asked to provide feedback while up to 20 constituents may attend,” he said yesterday.
Denis said the EC will take all objections into account before publishing another gazette similar to the one issued on Sept 14.
“Should the second gazette receive similar objections, the EC will then conduct another (public meeting) and following feedback from constituents who object, it will then submit a draft proposal to the prime minister,” he said.
Under Section 8 in Schedule 13 of the Federal Constitution, the prime minister may table the draft proposal to Parliament for approval via a simple majority.
“A simple majority is only required when the number of parliamentary and state seats remain unchanged. If there is a change, it requires a two-third majority.
“In the proposal for Sabah, which contains 13 new state seats, it needs a twothird majority by the state assembly before it goes to the Dewan Rakyat,” Denis said.
He said Section 11 of the same provision allows the prime minister to amend the draft following consultations with the EC.
“Upon majority approval, the draft will be submitted to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong before coming into force after Parliament or the state assembly is dissolved,” he said.
The EC has until Sept 14, 2018 to enforce its redelineation exercise or wait another eight years before initiating the exercise again.
The proposed recommendations have been on public display at all EC offices since Sept 15, until tomorrow.
In Sabah, the EC has also posted notices of the 13 proposed new state constituencies.
Both BN and opposition parties have hit out at the proposed redelineation, claiming it could create racial imbalance in some electoral constituencies.
Objections to the recommendations, however, can only be made by the state government, local authorities wholly or partially included in the redelineation exercise, or a group of no less than 100 registered voters of an affected constituency.