This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on March 22, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Opposition lawmakers have urged Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia to ensure they are given sufficient time to review the Election Commission's (EC) new constituency proposals.

DAP member of parliament (MP) Lim Kit Siang said while the EC submitted its new constituency redelineation report to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak on March 9 this year, MPs have yet to receive the proposal. The government is expected to table the new constituency redelineation proposals in the current Dewan Rakyat meeting held until April 5, for legislative approval ahead of the 14th general election.

"Despite considerable media speculation, neither the highly anticipated Election Commission Report on the new constituency redelineation proposals which the EC submitted to the prime minister on March 9, nor the prime minister's motion to give effect to the EC's new constituency proposals is on the table of MPs today (yesterday)," Kit Siang said at a press conference yesterday.

He also expressed concern that Najib would exercise his power under Section 9 of the 13th schedule of the Federal Constitution to alter the EC's final report on electoral boundaries before tabling it to Parliament.

In the EC's second constituency redelineation proposal for Selangor, Kit Siang said only five parliamentary constituencies would be affected - Tanjong Karang, Kuala Selangor, Gombak, Ampang and Pandan - compared with 18 in the first proposal.  He said the EC's first proposal suggested boundary changes for Selayang, Hulu Langat, Bangi, Puchong, Kelana Jaya, Petaling Jaya Selatan, Petaling Jaya Utara, Subang, Shah Alam, Kapar, Klang, Kota Raja and Kuala Langat, in addition to the five constituencies.

"Under the EC's first redelineation proposal, the parliamentary constituency of Petaling Jaya Utara (PJU), currently held by Tony Pua, would be turned into Damansara by merging PJU with parts of Selayang, Bukit Lanjan, Sungai Buloh and Kepong. It will turn PJU into a massively populated seat, increasing from 85,000 to almost 150,000 voters, thus making it one of the largest seats in the country. Further, the proposed Damansara parliamentary constituency will have four times more voters than Sabak Bernam and about 10 times that of Putrajaya," he added.