Certainty Amid Disasters Sabah Assembly Should Finish Term

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Sabah Chief Minister Hajiji Noor, we applaud your political wisdom and compassion, first in cancelling the Malaysia Day celebration, and later, not seeking the dissolution of the Sabah state legislature on Sept 19 as widely speculated.
Nothing - celebration or election, when avoidable - must stand in the way of disaster relief efforts when communities are still reeling from flood and environmental disasters that tragically claimed 14 lives, with thousands of households still suffering from displacement or inconveniences.
YAB, we call upon you to declare that the state government would not seek early dissolution of the 16th Sabah legislative assembly.
While this has spared the voters from unnecessary political upheaval during disaster relief efforts, Sabahans are still left in the dark about when your mandate will truly expire.
If the date of dissolution is known, the 17th state election must be held within 60 days.
This would allow the Election Commission (EC) to declare immediately the intended polling day, and the police, schools and all involved public agencies to prepare in coordination with the National Disaster Management Agency.
Most importantly, it allows all parties to postpone their election campaigns until sometime later.
Make life easy for everyone
YAB, we call upon you to lead Sabah as the first government, after the Negeri Sembilan state government in 2013, to go for a full term.
The people of Sabah must not be burdened with guessing the election date. Prolonging the uncertainty of the election date amidst disasters is deeply irresponsible.
Uncertainty by intention or by hesitation is most irresponsible in this era of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.
As we are now facing frequent, unpredictable natural disasters due to climate change, leadership must mean clarity, not uncertainty, and Sabah can lead Malaysia in this aspect.
Unless legislative confidence is lost or there is a cross-party consensus on an early dissolution date, all governments should honour their mandate and serve a full term.
It would make life easy not only for politicians and party workers, the EC, police, and all other public officials, but more importantly, every voter, especially those who live outside their constituencies and are denied the facility of postal or other forms of absentee voting.
Dissolution only weeks away
YAB, we are sure that you would agree with us that the rights of Sabahans must take precedence over political manoeuvres.
We call upon all political parties to support you in serving a full term. Stability, clarity, and respect for the people’s mandate must come first.
In any case, the state legislature’s automatic dissolution is only weeks away. There is no element of surprise or ambush to be exploited.
The Sabah state assembly buildingWe note that the state legislative speaker claimed that automatic dissolution would happen only on Nov 11.
However, as most of the state assemblypersons were sworn in on Oct 9, 2020, which caused the first sitting by provision of the Sabah State Legislature's Standing Order 14, another calculation by constitutional provision has the legislature’s five-year term ending on Oct 8, 2025.
We Sabahans are entitled to know without any doubt when our representatives’ mandate ends and the assembly dissolves. Anything less is an erosion of trust in the democratic process.
YAB, we also call upon the office of the Sabah attorney-general to officially announce its stand and the last day of the 16th state legislature to avoid confusion and potential constitutional violation. - Mkini
This statement was jointly issued by a group of concerned Sabahans - BEVERLY JOEMAN, IRWAN IDRIS, ANDI SURAIDAH, MARY ANNE BALTAZAR, and WONG KUKUI. Those interested in supporting their petition can sign here.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.

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