Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing
KUCHING: The Federal Court’s decision, which saw Dr Ting Tiong Choon disqualified as Pujut assemblyman yesterday, was a ‘good and fair judicial decision’, said Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing.
“How can we have a lawmaker with dual citizenship? He or she will have dual loyalties should a situation arise where a person’s loyalty is tested,” Masing told The Borneo Post.
He pointed out that Dr Ting should not have been considered as a candidate for Pujut in the first place, knowing that there was an issue with his dual Malaysian-Australian citizenship at the material time.
“The nomination paper stated very clearly that a candidate must be a Malaysian citizen. There is an element if dishonesty is involved,” he added.
The Federal Court at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya, in a 7-2 majority decision, ruled that the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly had the authority to disqualify Dr Ting as a member of the august House for having dual citizenship, despite him renouncing it before contesting in the 2016 state election.