STATEMENT BY TUN DR MAHATHIR MOHAMED ON REGISTRATION OF ‘PEJUANG’
1. Like all political parties Pejuang applied for registration with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).
2. To date Pejuang has not been registered. We had done everything required by ROS for its approval. We amended our constitution, wrote to ROS and met the Registrar.
3. In the end the Registrar informed us that our application meets all the conditions of its registration. But it has to be sent to the Minister of Home Affairs for his approval.
4. The law and rules for registration do not require the approval of the Minister. The Registrar of Societies is empowered to approve or reject the application. But when the Registrar informed us that the approval of the Minister was needed, we did not protest.
5. We waited for a reply. We waited and waited. But there was no reply from ROS or the minister.
6. We then went to the courts to get the court to ask the ROS for a reply. The evening before the court was to make a decision, ROS replied that our application was rejected. The reason given was that the online version of our constitution was not proper? But we had given the hard copy.
7. Now the Government has emergency powers. We wonder whether the pandemic stands in the way of our approval. Can it be that an approval of our party would worsen the pandemic. Or is the Government so busy with managing the COVID-19 that it has no time for anything else. Or is it the Government’s way of ensuring elections without opponents.
8. The Bersatu leaders in the Government must know that a day before the 14th General Election (GE) Bersatu’s registration was cancelled. The Prime Minister who at that time was the President of Bersatu was very angry. He thought it was unfair and a dirty trick for Najib’s Government to do that.
9. But now that he is the Government with emergency powers, he is doing the same thing that he condemned Najib for.
10. With the emergency in force the power of the Prime Minister is above challenge. There is no more democracy. So I suppose Pejuang cannot do anything to get the Registrar to register the party.
