THE special state assembly sitting tomorrow will go on with or without the opposition, Sabah Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Christina Liew said.

Liew said this in response to the boycott of the sitting announced by Sabah’s 24 opposition assemblymen from Umno, PBS, PBRS and Sabah Star.

“The state assembly will go on as scheduled and we will vote on the motion of confidence to Parti Warisan Sabah president as the chief minister of Sabah, after the swearing in of all assemblymen, including those appointed and those from the opposition,” she told The Malaysian Insight.

Sabah Umno’s Sulaman assemblyman Hajiji Hj Noor and Sabah Star president and Tambunan assemblyman Jeffrey Kitingan said the special sitting will be unlawful on grounds that there needs to be a notice of at least 21 days before a special assembly can be convened or within 120 days after the state assembly was dissolved under Article 21(4) of the state constitution.

The notice for the assembly was only given six days in advance. And with the last dissolution of the state assembly on April 7, this meant Sabah lawmakers were only supposed to convene on August 6.

The opposition politicians also say the special assembly is meant to derail a court challenge on Shafie Apdal’s legitimacy as Sabah’s chief minister, filed yb his predecessor Musa Aman on May 17.

Sabah Umno has 17 seats in the state assembly, followed by PBS (six) and PBRS (one). The governing Warisan-PH coalition, meanwhile, has 36 seats, a clear majority in the legislative assembly.

The assemblymen will be given three months to have themselves sworn in, failing which they will have to vacate their seats to allow for a by-election. – June 10, 2018.