PRIME Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob should dissolve Parliament for fresh elections as his administration has lost the moral ground to govern, Nazri Aziz (Padang Rengas-BN) said.

“It’s difficult for us to stand here today and run the government because we have lost the moral ground and the amendment bill,” Nazri told Dewan Rakyat during the debate on the constitutional amendment bill today.

“We have no moral ground to be the government but I leave it to my party,” added the former cabinet member.

Nazri said that although he had argued against holding fresh elections this year, yesterday’s events have changed his views.

“The right thing to do is to seek a fresh mandate. Now we have the excuse.

“If we were to follow the conventions in the United Kingdom, the government will go back to the people for a fresh mandate when it loses a bill even though it has the majority.”

Nazri is among the latest Umno leaders who have decided to ask Ismail to dissolve Parliament following the government’s failure to pass an amendment bill for the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) yesterday.

Following yesterday’s defeat, Umno leaders, including those who were absent during the vote, are now calling on Ismail to call a general election.

The amendment bill – tabled by Home Minister Hamzah Zainudin – to extend the enforcement of subsection 4(5) of Sosma for another five years was rejected by division vote (86-84) in Parliament yesterday.

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Azhar Azizan Harun, when announcing the vote, noted that 50 MPs were absent. – March 24, 2022.