SEVERAL states may delay implementation of an anti-party hopping law due to being unsure of the political situation in the country, political experts said. 

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Mazlan Ali said political instability may be the reason certain states were deferring enactment of an anti-party hopping law. 

“The states that are yet to pass the law may feel that the political situation is still unstable,” Mazlan told The Malaysian Insight. 

“States with complicated political situations like Sabah will find it difficult to make a decision,” he added. 

He said it was possible to implement the anti-party hopping law if there was a strong state government.

Pahang, Johor, Malacca, Terengganu, and Sabah have not adopted the anti-party hopping law since it came into force at the federal level on October 5, 2022.

Kedah recently passed an amendment bill to prohibit party hopping. Pahang will reportedly table one next month. 

Selangor, Penang, Perak, Perlis, Negri Sembilan, Kelantan, and Sarawak have already enacted laws to prevent lawmakers from jumping from one party to another. 

Bureaucratic process 

International Islamic University of Malaysia’s Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar said groundwork has been laid for the legislation to be tabled in the state assemblies. 

“However, delays are mainly bureaucratic in nature,” he said. 

Referring to the situation in Terengganu, the political science assistant professor said the state government was not concerned about voters but was awaiting orders from the governing party. 

“From what I checked, Terengganu did not table the anti-party hopping law. 

“The reasons given were there was no necessity for one and there was no order from PAS’s central leadership,” he said. 

Tunku Mohar believed the state government would not amend the law anytime soon. 

“It shows that the state government waits for direction from the party’s central leadership,” he added. 

The anti-party hopping law came into existence to prevent another “Sheraton Move”. The infamous incident had led to the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government 22 months after the coalition won the 2018 general election, prompting a mass exodus of PH MPs, who left to join Bersatu. 

The move was believed to be orchestrated by former Gombak MP Mohamed Azmin Ali, who was PKR deputy president. 

This led to loss of support for then-prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who resigned.

Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin, who took over from Dr Mahathir, then formed the Perikatan Nasional government. 

He, however, quit after 17 months in power. – April 26, 2023.