Malaysia seeking to limit premiership to two terms; bill to be debated in March

The Malaysian Parliament is seeking to set a two-term limit on the premiership. A Bill to that effect was tabled on Tuesday (3 December), as Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s administration, ruled by the Pakatan Harapan coalition, hopes to fulfil a pledge to prevent potential abuse of power and weed out corruption.
Setting a term limit requires an amendment to the Malaysian Federal Constitution to specify a maximum limit of two terms for a prime minister. Such an amendment can only be passed with two-thirds support from the 222 elected members of parliament.
The bill is scheduled to be debated in March 2020.
This pledge to limit the premiership was among a host of other promises made by PH in the run-up to the last general election in which the coalition won a shocking victory against Najib Razak led Barisan Nasional which was in power for 61 years since the country’s independence.
With the installation of the new administration, Najib and other members of the previous administration have been brought to face dozens of graft and money laundering charges in relation to the 1 Malaysia Development Berhad fund involving over RM2.6 billion in funds. Najib himself has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Dr Mahathir, who is serving his second run as the country’s leader, is Malaysia’s longest-serving prime minister when he was installed the first time in 1981, remaining in power for 22 years until 2003.
The Bill was introduced in parliament by the Prime Minister’s Department. When asked about the bill, the second-time prime minister responded positively, reported The Malay Mail.
“I am 94 years’ old now. Do you want me to be PM when I am 100 years old?” said Dr Mahathir.
In October last year, Dr Mahathir said he was confident that the government can get a two-thirds majority to support this amendment to the constitution, saying that it is in the interest of the opposition members to do so.
“I think we can convince some of them (from the opposition). I think it’s in their interests also,” he said to reporters on 18 October.
He said this after the tabling of the 11^th Malaysia Plan Mid-Term Review which included plans to introduce laws on political funding, review the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act in order to make it fully independent and lower the minimum voting age to 18 which was passed in July 2019. The bill which amended the voting age also allows for automatic voter registration, but that will only come into force on a date appointed by the country’s head of state the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.