THERE will be no by-election for the Sarawak constituency of Batu Lintang despite incumbent See Chee How, who won the seat on a Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) ticket, leaving the party recently.

Sarawak assembly Speaker Mohamad Asfia Awang Nasar said he was unable to determine that See’s action disqualified him from being a state assemblyman based on article 17(7)(a) of the Sarawak Constitution.

Speaking at a press conference in Kuching today, the speaker said he said received a letter from PSB president Wong Soon Koh on August 15 seeking to disqualify See as an assemblyman and enclosed a letter of undertaking purportedly signed by See.

Under Article 17(7)(a), for any undertaking to be effective, it must be given in writing to the house speaker before an elected person resigned from the party under which the person stood for election.

“The letter purportedly signed by YB See on December 3, 2021, was kept by PSB for eight months and 12 days. In this case, I did not and have never received any undertaking in writing from YB See,” Asfia said.

Asfia said he would leave it to See to contest where any undertaking that the assemblyman had purportedly made with PSB before contesting as the party candidate in the last state elections was voluntary or otherwise.

See, who held the Batu Lintang seat since 2011 and defended the seat in last year’s state elections on a PSB ticket, resigned from the party on August 12. He remains an Independent.

Following an announcement on See’s resignation by Asfia on August 14, Wong said See should resign as an assemblyman after leaving the party.

Wong said that based on oral and written undertakings made by See before being selected as the party’s candidate in the last state elections, See also had to compensate the party if he chose to resign after winning the seat as a PSB candidate. – Bernama, August 22, 2022.