Parliament rushes anti-defection bill; sends it to Whole House Committee

A government bill to add anti-defection provisions to the Constitution was sent to the Whole House Committee on Wednesday, with lawmakers from the main ruling People’s National Congress (PNC), who hold a supermajority in the Parliament, seeking to fast-track the passage of the legislature.

Constitutional amendments require the vote of at least three-fourth of the Parliament. That is 70 seats. The PNC has enough seats to ensure the passage of the bill.

Article 73 (c) of the Constitution declares circumstances where lawmakers will lose their seats.

• If a lawmaker with a proven debt fails to repay it in accordance with the court ruling
• If a lawmaker is serving a term of over 12 months for a criminal conviction
• If it has not been three years since a lawmaker sentenced to over 12 months for a criminal conviction has either finished serving the sentence or had the sentence commuted
• If a lawmaker is a judge in a court of law

The bill, sponsored by Hulhudhoo MP Mohamed Shahid, declares three more circumstances where lawmakers will lose their seat. That is:

• If a lawmaker resigns from or is dismissed or expelled from the party they were elected on behalf of
• If a lawmaker switches parties or is dismissed or expelled from a party
• If an independent lawmaker joins a party

Several lawmakers, as well as politicians and legal experts, have expressed concern over the bill.

The bill was presented to the Parliament on Wednesday morning, and was accepted into the Parliament with a majority vote of 69-12, after a one-hour debate.

Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim, who represents the Dhiggaru constituency, proposed having the bill sent to the Whole House Committee. He said that it is crucial that work on the bill is completed “as soon as possible.” The motion was seconded by Inguraidhoo MP Ibrahim Falah, the leader of PNC’s parliamentary group.

The decision to send the bill to the Whole House Committee passed with a majority vote of 71-12.

Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla announced that the Whole House Committee would convene at 12:30 pm. He did not announce when the next sitting would be held, saying that lawmakers would be informed at a later time.

It is likely that the Parliament will pass the bill on Wednesday itself.