THE Registrar of Society (ROS) is seemingly being under continuous pressure by different UMNO leaders to allow the amendments to UMNO’s party constitution and to delay its party elections until after the 15th General Election (GE15).
Lawyer and social rights advocate Charles Hector is puzzled as to how the UMNO Supreme Council could possess such authority after their term expired in June 2021 to call for party general meeting or to even propose and amend its party’s constitution to delay its elections to after GE15.
“I have not had sight of the amendment approved at the general meeting of UMNO,” he pointed out in a media statement.
“(As) the ROS only allowed for a delay in holding party elections until December 2022, can the office bearers or UMNO leaders exercise all powers the same way they could before their official term ended, or really they are now just a ‘caretaker leadership’ with powers just to arrange and hold party elections as permitted by ROS.
“This means they cannot call for general meeting or use powers that normally legitimate leaders can do during their term of office.”
Hector was commenting on a statement by UMNO secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan who recently expressed hope that the ROS will have no obstacle to approving the party’s constitutional amendment application.
Ahmad also denied allegations that the current UMNO office bearers are caretakers and cannot make policy decisions, including amendments to its constitution. He said ROS had confirmed the matter and that the term “caretaker” was not in UMNO’s constitution during the extension of its term which is until Dec 29.
Supposing that the so-called general meeting was attended by delegates who are leaders of branches/divisions, Hector further queried if their term of office had not expired in mid-2021 “or did they already have elections at that level already so the new leaders are leaders for new term 2021-2024?”
“If the general meeting was attended by persons who no longer had the right to be delegates – their term having expired when the term of office expired in mid-2021 – then the meeting itself becomes invalid,” he insisted.
Hector further cautioned that ROS has to be careful with its decision given any decision it made would serve as precedence “and be the new norm for all societies in Malaysia”.
“ROS cannot say UMNO can but other societies and parties cannot … Will it do as UMNO want but then (again) UMNO (or Barisan Nasional) is really not in power now but merely part of ruling coalition with Perikatan Nasional and other coalitions?” asked Hector.
“Is the ROS ‘controlled’ by UMNO or political parties or parties in control of the Government or is the ROS independent?” – July 13, 2022
Main photo credit: FMT
