KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's Election Commission on Tuesday rejected the opposition's bid to force the resignation of two of its own state lawmakers who are rumoured to be defecting to the government.
The northern state of Perak has been gripped by political intrigue that threatens to disrupt the delicate balance of power in the state assembly, narrowly controlled by the Pakatan Rakyat opposition alliance.
The alliance had presented resignation letters from two of its legislators who were widely believed to be planning to defect, setting the stage for by-elections which would have been seen as a test of the national mood.
But the Perak lawmakers - Mohd Osman Jailu and Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi - said the letters were undated documents they were required to sign when they were elected in March last year, and insisted they wanted to remain in the state assembly.
Election Commission (EC) chief Abdul Aziz Mohammad Yusof overruled the state speaker's decision to declare the seats vacant.
"As a result the EC declares in its special meeting today that the two assemblymen still hold the seats as decided under the 12th general election," he told a press conference.
Opposition veteran Lim Kit Siang slammed the authority's decision, saying any ruling over the resignation of the pair should have been made by the courts.
"The Election Commission has acted unconstitutionally outside its jurisdiction in refusing to recognise the decision of the Perak Speaker, V. Sivakumar, on the vacancy of the (seats) and to hold by-elections," he said.
Pakatan Rakyat has mounted two successful by-election campaigns since March general elections where it scooped its best results in history, boosting its ambitions of unseating the Barisan Nasional coalition government.
The alliance currently holds 32 seats in the 59-seat state assembly, with Barisan Nasional holding 27. If the two legislators switch sides, it would reduce the majority to just one seat.
Channel News Asia
03/02/09
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