KUCHING: The Federal Court has today deferred the delivery of a decision on whether the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) has the power to disqualify an elected representative.
The case involves Pujut assemblyman Dr Ting Tiong Choon, who was disqualified as an elected representative on May 12, 2017, following a motion tabled by then-Second Finance Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh.
When contacted, Padungan assemblyman Wong King Wei, who is one of the attorneys involved in the hearing, said that the decision has been deferred to a date yet to be notified.
The rare nine-member Federal Court bench was also supposed to decide whether a person who has acquired foreign citizenship but renounced it before nomination day can stand to be elected or otherwise.
The hearing took place at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya.
Dr Ting then filed an Originating Summons in the Kuching High Court on June 7 that same year to challenge the decision by DUN Sarawak to disqualify him.
The High Court subsequently ruled against the DUN’s decision to disqualify Dr Ting as Pujut assemblyman.
In July last year, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals of the DUN, DUN Speaker Datuk Amar Mohd Asfia Awang Nassar and Wong, ruling that the DUN had exceeded its power when it disqualified Dr Ting on the basis of his dual citizenship, which Dr Ting had given up before being nominated as a candidate.
However later the same month, the Federal Court granted the DUN’s application for leave to appeal against the decision of the High Court and Court of Appeal.