Fixed-term Parliament: Constitution needs amendment - Expert
SHAH ALAM - The Federal Constitution needs to be amended if the government wants to enact the Fixed-term Parliament Act to retain the appointed Prime Minister and the government formed after the General Election (GE) until the end of the administration.
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Law and Policy Lecturer Dr. Muhammad Fathi Yusof said if Malaysia wanted to maintain the position of the Prime Minister for a full term, then the government needs to amend Article 43 (4) of the Federal Constitution.
He said Article 43(4) states that if the Prime Minister no longer has the majority confidence of the members of the House of Representatives, then he shall resign the Cabinet or request the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to dissolve Parliament to enable the GE to be held.
"If the government wants to establish a fixed term for the Prime Minister's service, Article 43(4) of the Federal Constitution needs to be amended or repealed.
"This is because as long as the relevant law exists, the position is subject to the majority confidence of the members of the House.
"However, even if Article 43 (4) of the Federal Constitution is repealed, the position of the Prime Minister in a parliamentary democracy system as practised in Malaysia, the United Kingdom, and Australia still remains subject to the majority confidence of the members of Parliament because their appointment is also based on the majority confidence of the members of Parliament through the 'First Pass The Post' system, not through a special election as implemented in the United States, Indonesia and the Philippines," he said when contacted by Sinar Premium.
On Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi suggested that a law needed to be enacted to allow the government formed after the GE to administer and survive until the end of the term.
Zahid, who is also the Umno President said that if introduced, the law would allow the government to focus on administering the country without endless political interference.
Commenting further, Fathi emphasised the need for the government to pay attention to the contrary aspects if the desire to enact the Fixed-term Parliament Act was to be realised.
For example, he sees questions arising about the Prime Minister's and the existing government's support status if they lose in a vote determining the approval of a significant government proposal in the House of Representatives, such as the annual budget motion.
He added that if a critical government proposal, such as the budget motion, failed to gain the majority support of the members of Parliament, the country would face significant problems, and investor confidence in Malaysia's future economy would continue to decline.
"This controversy is feared to cast doubt on foreign investors about the credibility and credibility of the governing government, thus having a negative impact on the country's economy if the democratic system does not provide a solution to change an inefficient government.
"Therefore, if the Fixed-term Parliament Act is to be implemented, the government needs to create flexibility in the process of determining votes and the approval of motions in the House of Representatives," he said.
Fathi said that among the countries that have created a fixed-term system for the Head of State or Prime Minister were the United States, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
"We also need to study the suitability of this act being introduced. I am afraid if the country accepts an incompetent and weak Prime Minister, we have no solution to change to a better leader due to constitutional constraints.
"As a result, I believe that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the Council of Malay Rulers may play a role as a check and balance in the introduction of a fixed-term for the Prime Minister and the government for five years," he said.
Meanwhile, a lecturer at the Pusat Perdana, Faculty of Technology and Informatics Razak at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Associate Professor Dr Mazlan Ali had a different opinion and believed the Fixed-term Parliament Act was unnecessary.
He said that the country already has sufficient legal democratic systems to protect the position of the Prime Minister and the lifespan of the government, including the existence of the Anti-Hopping Act enacted in 2022.
"For me, existing laws such as the Anti-Hopping Act have been created and are sufficient to ensure that any movement to overthrow the government is difficult to implement.
"If the government amends the Federal Constitution to create legislation to retain the government and the position of the Prime Minister, the country will face the negative perception of the world and the people, as if the government wants to create an 'iron-fist' administration regime," he said.
