Speaker quashes talk of more Parliament seats via S'wak assembly
PETALING JAYA : Sarawak assembly speaker Asfia Awang Nassar has quashed rumours that the state government plans to increase the number of parliamentary and state seats in the state through a bill tabled in the legislative assembly.
Asfia said changes to the number of parliamentary and state seats in Sarawak fell under the purview of the Election Commission, not the state assembly, The Borneo Post reported.
'The state assembly doesn't (have any say). It's the EC. It's a federal power. It's not the state assembly that creates (new constituencies),' he was quoted as saying.
This follows a Dayak Daily report on rumours that the special Sarawak assembly sitting on July 7 would see the tabling of a bill to increase the number of parliamentary seats to 46 and state seats to 99.
Sarawak currently has 31 parliamentary seats and 82 state seats.
There has been a growing push for Sabah and Sarawak to be allocated one-third of the seats in Parliament, as per the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
However, in November, deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof said the two East Malaysian states could only be given one-third of the Dewan Rakyat seats after the next general election.
Asfia did not dismiss the possibility that the redelineation of parliamentary and state seats could be brought up at the special sitting, but maintained that any execution of this would come under the EC's jurisdiction.
He also said he had yet to receive any bills from the state government.
'I have not received any bills yet. Once I receive the bill, I shall call for a press conference and brief (the media on) what this is all about,' he said.
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