DAP expresses shock at the threat by outgoing Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia to boycott the swearing-in of PR MPs
The role of the Speaker of the House is to conduct parliamentary business impartially and should not partake or interfere in political matters. It is most unbecoming of any Speaker and he has no right to boycott any parliamentarian or deliberately cause his or her disqualification by boycotting or refusing to swear him or her in. I hope that this is only a joke by Tan Sri Pandikar or else there will be serious doubts on his intentions and impartiality when he presides over Parliament.
DAP 38 MPs will neither boycott the Dewan Rakyat's swearing-in ceremony of Members of Parliament on 24 June 2013 nor its parliamentary sittings but will use the legislative process to press for polls reform, particularly adhering to the democratic principle of “one-person, one-vote, one-value”. Boycotting the swearing-in of MPs will not be seen as a “symbolic gesture” or a bold step to protest against the stolen general elections when PR can make the point more effectively with nation-wide peaceful protest rallies.
For those who commit electoral fraud, will not be affected by a mere boycotting of a swearing-in ceremony as compared to the voices of the real people’s movement. DAP is adopting a 3-prong approach to press for electoral reforms and clean elections for a fair delineation of constituencies to respect the “one-person, one-vote, one-value” principle:-
Legal processs of challenging in courts those seats that BN won through fraud, vote-buying and manipulating voters list through phantom voters and “Bangla” non-citizens;
Political process of pressing for polls reforms in legislative assemblies, civil campaigns and international fora.
People process of conducting mass movement campaigns, only where necessary, to press for clean, free and fair elections.
Nothing highlights the injustice of unfair electoral process more than Putrajaya won by BN with only 16,000 voters as compared to Kapar with 150,000 voters won by PR. This follows PR losing the general elections despite winning a majority 51% of the popular vote whilst BN won the general elections with 60% of the parliamentary seats despite winning only a minority 47% of the popular vote. BN is clearly a minority government with a minority Cabinet that has lost both moral and political legitimacy to be the democratically-elected government in Malaysia.
Both BN and the Elections Commission(EC) must admit that this was the most unfair and dirtiest elections in history where even the promised indelible ink that was supposed to last at least 3 days could be easily washed off almost immediately. The present EC members must resign as they cannot be relied up to conduct a fair constituency delineation exercise.
