From P Ramakrishnan
It is difficult to justify why anyone would want to oppose an
anti-party-hopping legislation that holds out hope for morality in
politics. Any sane person should welcome this move so that elected
representatives who betray their electors cannot go scot-free. These
renegades cannot ignore the mandate of the voters who elected them.
The proposed legislation by the Penang State government does not
prevent anyone from leaving their current party. They are free to go and
join any party and associate themselves with whatever party they choose
to keep company. There is no law to prevent them from jumping ship!
All that an anti-party-hopping legislation seeks to do is to force a
by-election so that the voters who had been betrayed could be given the
opportunity to decide once again whether they still want renegades or
defectors to continue as their elected representatives. Those who
initially elected the renegades must have the right to decide whether
they still want them as their elected representative.
What must not be tolerated is the betrayal of the voters who had cast
their votes in favour of a candidate who then decides to party-hop
after winning. The voters’ electoral decisions cannot be sidelined and
totally ignored as if they were of no consequence.
Besides, anti-party-hopping legislation also seeks to curb political
corruption. Undoubtedly, there is always an element of corruption
involved, some attractive inducement held out to corrupt politicians to
switch sides. Unscrupulous politicians offer themselves for sale without
a tinge of conscience. Otherwise there would be no reason to switch
parties.
We witnessed in horror how these unscrupulous politicians
unconscionably frustrated the will of the voters in Perak by resigning
from their respective parties to enable an ignoble takeover of a
people’s government by the Barisan Nasional.
This shameful conduct was given so much prominence and publicity on
TV with the then Deputy Prime Minister, who is believed to have
orchestrated this despicable act, welcoming their decision as if these
scoundrels have performed a fantastic feat! It was this morally
contemptible act that toppled a legitimate government that was duly
elected by the will of the people.
When demeaning conduct is glorified with such pompous fanfare then
something must be seriously wrong because it means that we are totally
incapable of differentiating what is right and wrong! And when the
Deputy Prime Minister, the second topmost leader of the country, was
associated with this diabolical conduct what hope is there for integrity
and moral conduct.
When this despicable behaviour is upheld by the justice system, it is totally appalling and absolutely disgusting!
Our courts have inexplicably defended the right of renegade
representatives – at the expense of thousands of voters – on the premise
of upholding the renegades’ right of association. This is ridiculous.
This so-called right of association was never in jeopardy. The right to
associate was never the issue. That freedom was never denied. The
renegades were free to defect.
The courts strangely and jealously, in a convoluted manner, have
ruled that if renegade representatives were to give up their elected
positions, it would constitute an infringement of their right. The
courts seem so concerned with the turncoats’ right while completely
ignoring the rights of thousands of voters whose electoral decision was
betrayed and nullified by the unprincipled behaviour of these renegade
representatives.
Common sense would dictate that the courts should have decided in
favour of the voters to uphold the democratic process – but the courts
instead shamefully and willfully chose to sacrifice the rights of
thousands of voters. It was so obvious that the freedom of association
was not interfered with. Renegades would not lose their membership in
their new-found parties if they were to resign from their elected
positions.
They say justice is blind in that it does not take into consideration
the status of individuals or their position in society but in these
cases, the judgments were blind justice in that they failed to see
reason and overlooked what was very obvious.
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