KUCHING: There is no reason for Batu Lintang assemblyman See Chee How to vacate his seat, and there won’t be a by-election for that seat either even though he resigned as a member of Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB).
State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Speaker Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nasar pointed out that See resigned from PSB on Aug 12, and PSB president Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh had asked the latter to vacate his seat, however, See had responded that he did not want to leave and was prepared to face legal action from PSB.
“I wish to address the position of See. As I told the media on Aug 14, I received a letter signed by See on Aug 12 stating categorically that he had resigned his membership of PSB with immediate effect and that he will continue to serve the constituents in Batu Lintang.
“A letter, also dated Aug 12 and addressed to the PSB president, was attached to his letter.
“However, on Aug 15, three days after See had left PSB, I received a letter from Soon Koh with a note that was allegedly signed by See.
“Before Aug 15, I never received any Letter of Undertaking (LU) from See saying that he will not resign his membership to which he was elected under PSB,” he said at a press conference at the DUN Complex here today.
He explained that under Sarawak Constitution Article 17(7)(a), “where a person has voluntarily given an undertaking in writing to the Speaker that he will not resign his membership of the party for which he stood or which he belonged to when he is elected to the DUN…”, he would be disqualified as a DUN member and his seat would become vacant.
“The plain language of the Article means that for the undertaking to be effective, it must be given before an elected person resigns from the party under which he stood for election.
“In this case, I did not and have never received any undertaking in writing from See. The purported letter of undertaking, said to be signed by See was delivered by Soon Koh to my office on Aug 15, which was three days after I received a letter from See that he had resigned from PSB with immediate effect.
“What he (See) said in his letter of Aug 12 casts serious doubt that he had voluntarily undertaken in writing that he would vacate his seat in the DUN if he should resign from PSB.
“In any event, he resigned from PSB before the purported letter undertaking was sent by the PSB president to my office,” he said.
He went on to say the LU purportedly signed by See on Dec 3, 2021 was kept by PSB for eight months and 12 days.
“The letter was specifically and explicitly addressed to the Speaker. However, it should have been sent to the Speaker within 15 days from Dec 3, 2021 to comply with the date of election on Dec 18, 2021.
“It was sent to me on Aug 15, three days after See submitted his resignation from PSB, a day after I announced See’s resignation from PSB on Aug 14. So, it is like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted,” he said.
Accordingly, he said he is unable to determine that See is disqualified under Article 17(7)(a) of the Sarawak State Constitution from membership in the DUN Sarawak.
When questioned about whether he had received the LU from PSB that was also signed by other elected officials, Asfia responded that he had only ever received a LU from See.
As to whether the LU is constitutionally right, Asfia said it is another issue altogether.
“The validity, the legality and the constitutionality take different dimensions,” he said.
Soon Koh, in a statement on Aug 14, said that See must be fully aware of the commitments, both oral and written, that he had given to the party before he was selected to be the party’s candidate in the Batu Lintang constituency.
“This included an undertaking to compensate the party if the latter chooses to resign after winning the seat.
“It also included an undertaking to resign from his position as an elected representative if he resigns from PSB after winning the seat,” he stressed.
