Pahang ruling coalition overcomes impasse, appoints 5 reps
The BN-led ruling coalition in Pahang has appointed five new assemblypersons to join its ranks today, further solidifying its hold on the state government.
The consensus was reached after overcoming initial disagreements over the election process.
The BN-led ruling coalition in Pahang has appointed five new assemblypersons to join its ranks today, further solidifying its hold on the state government.
The consensus was reached after overcoming initial disagreements over the election process.
The five nominated assemblypersons comprise three from BN and two from Pakatan Harapan.
The BN nominees are Jerantut Umno division chief Haris Salleh Hamzah, Temerloh MCA division chief Wong Tat Chee, and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia lecturer Ahmad Irshadi Abdullah.
The two from Harapan are Pahang Amanah chief Mohd Fadzil Mohd Ramly and state PKR deputy chief Rizal Jamin.
Pahang Menteri Besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail tabled a motion to appoint the five which was passed with a simple majority in the state assembly today.
This was despite the protest from Perikatan Nasional assemblypersons including state opposition leader Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, who is also the PAS deputy president.
The Pahang assembly comprises 42 elected members, thus requiring at least 22 votes to pass a motion by a simple majority, and 28 votes for a two-thirds majority.
The BN-Harapan coalition has 25 elected assemblypersons, comprising 16 from Umno, six from DAP, two from PKR, and one from MIC.
Across the political divide are 15 members from PAS and two from Bersatu.
No two-thirds majority
With the new addition of the five nominated members, the Pahang assembly has a total of 47 members, with 30 coming from the government.
The threshold needed to pass a motion by simple majority also increases to 24 votes, and a supermajority to 32 votes.
In other words, although the Pahang ruling coalition has strengthened its position, it still lacks the two-thirds majority needed to unilaterally pass amendments to the state constitution and would need support from the opposition to do so.
An example of such an amendment includes enacting an anti-hopping law for the state.
The Pahang assembly amended its constitution in November 2020 to allow for the appointment of up to five nominated assemblypersons, but this is the first time such appointments have been made.
At the time, Harapan assemblypersons had staged a walkout to protest the amendment and disparaged it as a move by the then BN-PAS state government to consolidate its position.
Disagreements
According to sources familiar with internal discussions on the latest appointments, both BN and Harapan had agreed on the “3+2” formula but disagreed on whom should be appointed, until Wan Rosdy stepped in to provide clarification during a pre-council meeting on May 5.
The sources claimed that DAP’s Mentakab assemblyperson Woo Chee Wan and Pahang senior exco member Mohd Soffi Abd Razak opposed Wong and Rizal’s appointments, respectively.
Malaysiakini learned that Woo and Soffi were concerned that the appointments would allow Wong and Rizal to set up service centres in their constituencies, which would interfere with their constituency services.
Woo had previously faced off against Wong and defeated him during the 2018 election, while Soffi did the same to Rizal in Benta in 2022.
“However, the menteri besar stated during the meeting that nominated assemblypersons do not have constituencies and cannot set up service centres.
“Even if he (Wong) is from Mentakab, he cannot set up a service centre. Otherwise, it would be misleading.
“The menteri besar also explained that the role of nominated assemblypersons is to debate in the state assembly and assist with the state government's projects,” said one of the sources.
Private member’s bill
According to the source, based on the principle of not interfering with each other’s nominees, both BN and Harapan eventually accepted the list fully.
Sources also said that during the May 5 pre-council meeting, there was a briefing about a private member’s bill from PAS.
The bill aimed to amend the state constitution to abolish the voting rights of the nominated assemblypersons, the sources add.
However, it is learned that Pahang speaker Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin has rejected the bill.
Tuan Ibrahim said the incident in the state assembly today showed that the state government lacks confidence.
“If they are strong enough, they don't need to rush the appointment of nominated assemblypersons.
“It's like they are not confident in their own strength,” the Cheka assemblyperson told a press conference after the sitting adjourned.
Additional reporting by NS Ramli
Please join the Malaysiakini WhatsApp Channel to get the latest news and views that matter.
