Sivarasa dismisses bid to nullify Anwar's election as baseless
PKR'S R Sivarasa (picture) has rejected a legal challenge by former Federal Minister P Waytha Moorthy, seeking to disqualify Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as Tambun MP and prime minister (PM), as baseless.
Waytha, who served in Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's Cabinet from 2018 to 2020, is asking the High Court to declare Anwar's Nov 19, 2022, election win in Tambun and his appointment as PM five days later null and void.
He contends that the royal pardon granted to the PKR president in 2018 did not explicitly exempt him from the five-year disqualification period for contesting an election after release from prison.
Sivarasa said such reasoning reflected a failure to understand the proper application of Article 48 of the Federal Constitution, which sets out the circumstances under which an MP can be disqualified.
He said it was a matter of public record that Anwar received a full and free pardon in 2018 from the then King, who viewed the conviction as a miscarriage of justice.
'The inclusion of the words 'and who has not received a free pardon' in Article 48 makes clear that once a free pardon is granted, a prior conviction no longer serves as a disqualifying factor.
'It is a trite principle in law, which unfortunately Waytha Moorthy does not appear to appreciate, that the effect of a full and free pardon is to wipe away a conviction completely. It is as if the conviction and sentence never occurred at all,' he said in a statement.
Sivarasa, who heads PKR's legal bureau, questioned why the issue had not been raised by Anwar's opponents during the Tambun campaign, nor when he was appointed as PM in November 2022.
'One wonders why he took two and three-quarter years to suddenly wake up one morning having dreamed up this fatuous point. Is this case really more about trying to stay politically relevant in any possible way?' he added.
DAP's Syahredzan Johan also questioned whether Waytha's suit was connected to his recent meeting with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia leaders.
The Bangi MP said that while anyone had the right to file court proceedings, the suit appeared 'frivolous and vexatious' given that Anwar has been PM for nearly three years.
Waytha, who is president of the Malaysian Advancement Party, was among several political leaders outside the government bloc who met Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin recently to discuss forming a united Opposition front. — TMR
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