Constitutional Amendment to limit PM’s tenure – will it see the light of the day?
Kuala Lumpur : The Madani government, led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, has tabled a constitutional amendment in Parliament to limit the Prime Minister’s tenure to 10 years.
However, since this amendment involves the Federal Constitution, it requires a two-thirds majority in Parliament to be passed. Whether the bill will receive the two-thirds majority remains to be seen as opposition has voiced opposition to the bill citing various reasons.
Opposition’s concern
Takiyuddin Hassan, the Secretary-General of the PAS party, recently speaking in Parliament on behalf of the opposition, stated that they are objecting to the amendment for two primary reasons.
Takiyuddin argued that before tabling the amendment in Parliament, the government should have first obtained the consent of the Conference of Rulers. He claimed that the amendment affects the discretionary powers of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (the King), since it seeks to limit or reduce the King’s authority in appointing a Prime Minister and therefore the opposition’s view is that for such an amendment to pass through prior consent of the rulers’ council is mandatory.
The opposition is also against the bill since it is seeking to reduce or jeorpardise the powers of the Agong under the constitution. Therefore, Takiyuddin argued that even if the bill is passed with a two-thirds majority it may not be legal for the above-stated reasons.
