Although the conventional wisdom is that general elections would be called after the presentation of the 2,000 Budget in Parliament on Oct. 29, I tend to discount it.
I believe that once Parliament reconvenes on Oct. 18, then we are looking at the likelihood of general election next year.
Although there is nothing in the Constitution to prevent Parliament
from being dissolved in mid-session after the presentation of the 2,000
Budget on Oct. 29, and before its passage, such an action would be the
worst example of the Barisan Nasional political hegemony and Mahathir’s
contempt for Parliament, as well as subjecting Mahathir and his 18-year
premiership to public ridicule and scorn.
This is because dissolution of Parliament during the midst of a Parliamentary
meeting only takes place when there is a constitutional crisis, as in the
sudden loss of a wafer-thin majority for the government or the ruling party
being voted out of office as losing a no-confidence motion.
This is not the case here, as Mahathir has a rock-solid five-sixth parliamentary majority and the Barisan Nasional is in no danger of losing its overhwhelming and suffocating predominance in Parliament - at least not until the next general election.
To dissolve the Malaysian Parliament in mid-session will expose Mahathir to public ridicule and scorn that he had become so politically desperate that he is prepared to trifle with Parliament and waste public funds in a futile exercise by summoning 192 MPs to meet for two or three weeks, as the parliamentary business transacted in the two or three weeks before dissolution would all lapse, having all to be re-debated and re-adopted in the new Parliament.
Of course, if Mahathir has no confidence whatsoever of retaining parliamentary two-thirds majority for the Barisan Nasional in the next election, and is mortally afraid of the new electoral list which would come into effect next January, bringing into play the 650,000 new young voters who would begin to exercise their vote in January, he might be desperate enough to forget about his sense of pride, dignity and honour and dissolve Parliament in mid-session after the 2000 Budget had been presented on Oct. 29.
In the past several months, the Prime Minister had been touring the various states openly campaigning for the Barisan Nasional in the run-up to the next general election.
Mahathir should realise that it is none of the business of the Prime Minister of Malaysia to campaign for votes for the Barisan Nasional, and there must be a clear distinction between his two positions, one as Prime Minister of the country and the other as head of UMNO and Barisan Nasional.
Malaysian taxpayers pay Mahathir to carry out his duties as Prime Minister and not as President of UMNO and Chairman of Barisan Nasional. Thus, when the Prime Minister goes round the country using public funds and resources to drum up support for Barisan Nasional, it is an abuse of power, misappropriation of public funds and clear conflict of interest.
If Mahathir is so concerned that the Barisan Nasional might lose its two-thirds parliamentary majority for the first time in history, and he has to spearhead the Barisan Nasional campaign to consolidate voter support for the next election, he should step down temporarily as Prime Minister to fully focus on his party political duties and let Datuk Seri Abdullah Badawi act as Prime Minister until the outcome of the next election.
This was what Bapa Malaysia, Tengku Abdul Rahman did in April 1959, when he felt that he had to go round the country to consolidate national support for Alliance, which was faced with formidable challenge from the Opposition. Tengku stepped down temporarily as Prime Minister between April to August 1959 so that he would not be accused of abusing his powers and position as Prime Minister when he led the campaign for public support for Alliance, resuming the Prime Minister’s post after the Alliance won the 1959 general election. Tun Razak acted as the Prime Minister during those four months.
(5/10/99)