CONCEPT
OF DEMOCRACY
Pericles
definition of democracy in Athens:
“Our constitution is named a
democracy, because it is in the hands not of the few but of the many. But our
laws secure equal justice for all in their private disputes and our public
opinion welcomes and honours talent in every branch of achievement …on the
ground of excellent alone…our citizen attend both to public and private duties
and do not allow absorption in their various affairs to interfere with their
knowledge of the city’s we decide or debate, carefully and in person of matters
of policy holding…that acts are foredoomed to failure when undertaken
discussed”
There
are generally two types of government – autocracy and democracy. The political
practice in the two systems is very different. In the autocratic system of
government, power is concentrated in a single person, who is often pictured as
a ruler who is wicked, who ignores the voice of the people and completely
denies them of their power. This iron-fisted ruler is often nicknamed dictator.
Democracy
on the other hand, is a form of government in which the policy is decided by
the preference of the majority in a decision-making process, usually elections.
Democracy as a form of government always has the following characteristics:
·
There
is a demos, a group which makes political
decisions by some form of collective procedure. In modern democracies the demos
is the nation, and citizenship is usually equivalent to membership.
·
There
is a territory where the decisions
apply, and where the demos are resident. In modern democracies, the territory
is the nation-state.
·
There
is a decision-making procedure, which
is either direct (for instance a referendum) or indirect (for instance election
of a parliament).
GENERAL ELECTION
An
important aspect of the democratic system is elections. Elections in the
practice of democracy constitute a social contract between the people and the
candidate or party (that succeeds to form a government).
When
the majority of the people choose a party from among the contesting parties in
an election (and the party then forms the government) it means the voters have
certain expectations that the candidate will carry out.
The
party that wins the election and forms the government should fulfil the party’s
promises and manifesto proclaimed in the election campaign.
At
the state level, elected representatives of the people sit in the State
Legislative Assembly of each state. At the federal or national level, elected
Members of Parliament sit in the Dewan Rakyat or House of Representatives.
There
are two types of general election. First, the general election for the whole
country, held once in every five years. The next is the by-elections, also
considered a general election because the concept of the election itself
constitutes the choosing of a representative by the public citizens for the
Parliament and the State Legislative Assembly.
There
are clear differences between the two types of election. The first type is only
held after Parliament or the State Legislative Assembly is dissolved. The
by-elections do not involve the dissolution of any of the assembly nor do they
follow a fixed schedule.
The
general election is usually held every 5 years. Prior to carrying out the
election, the Yang di-Pertuan Agung must dissolve the Parliament on the advice
or at the request of the Prime Minister.
This
occurs at the federal level. At the State level, a general election is held
after the State Legislative Assembly is dissolved by the Ruler or Yang Dipertua
Negeri at the request of the Menteri Besar or Chief Minister.
As
soon as Parliament is dissolved, the elections must be held within 60 days in
West Malaysia and within 90 days in Sabah and Sarawak.
The
time specified is reasonable for the Election Commission, to prepare the
election arrangements and the contesting parties to get ready, hold campaigns
and construct definite strategies following the regulations or laws that have
been fixed from time to time.
For
a general election, after the Yang di-Pertuan Agung dissolves Parliament at the
request of the Prime Minister, the Election Commission will issue an order to
the Managing Officer to organize the balloting process (election).
The
responsibility of the Managing Officer is to issue a statement, through the
Government Gazette or newspaper, on the date of nomination of candidate for the
said election, the place and the time of election for every electoral
constituency. The Election Commission also determines the date and place of
balloting.
Any
candidate who wishes to contest must obtain a nominator, a seconder and at
least four other people, whose names are recorded in the nomination paper.
They
must also be registered voters in the voters’ register of the constituency
where the candidate is contesting.
The
balloting day can be held after 3 weeks from the date of nomination but cannot
exceed 8 weeks. On the balloting day, all voters who qualify to vote can carry
out their responsibility by casting their votes in balloting places provided.
Before
the balloting day arrives, the contesting parties are allowed to carry out
election campaigns through political talks. The freedom of speech and assembly
during the campaigns also show that the basic freedom as embodied in Article 10 of the Federal Constitution are protected in the country which
practices a democratic system of government.
However,
to ensure public security all political talks whether by the party that had
held the reins of the government or the opposition, it is necessary to get
police approval or permit.
For
a general election, every voter is given two sheets of ballot papers of
different colours; one for the State Legislative Assembly constituency and the
other for the Parliamentary constituency.
On
each ballot paper are symbols representing the contesting candidates and the
space for the voter to make his choice.
The
responsibility of voting is completed with the voter marking ‘X’ in the space
provided against the symbol representing the candidate of the voter’s choice.
The ballot papers are put into separate ballot boxes for the Parliamentary
constituency and the State Legislative Constituency.
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Election Commission
Article 113 of the Federal Constitution
provides
that the body that is responsible for managing and administering the elections
is the Election Commission.
The
responsibility of the Commission can be divided into three main areas:
1. Draw up the borders of
the electoral constituencies
2. Prepare and check the
voters’ lists for the elections; and
3. Manage the election
process for the Parliamentary and State Legislative Assembly constituencies
It
is to be understood that the first responsibility is important because it is
related to the increase in population and the development of settlements or the
growth of small towns in a constituency.
The
members of the Election Commission are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong
after consultation with the Council of Rulers.
The
membership of the Commission is provided under Article 114 of the Federal Constitution.
Its membership consists of a chairperson, a deputy and 3 other members.
Members
of the Commission shall hold office until they reach the age of 65 but they may
resign any time by writing to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong
is empowered to remove any member who:
·
is
an undischarged bankrupt, or
·
engages
in any paid office or employment outside the duties of his office or
·
is
a member of either House of Parliament or of the Legislative Assembly of a
state.
The
Federal Constitution also provides for the appointment of one member to
represent Sabah and Sarawak. This member is to be appointed in rotation from
the two states.
Members
of the Commission may also be removed from offices for the following reasons:
·
behaviour
unbecoming of this office
·
unable
to discharge his duties due to:
- state of his health,
or
- mental condition
State Legislative Assembly and
Parliamentary Members
In
a public general election the voters will choose two candidates who are deemed
qualified to represent them in the Houses, that is, the State Legislative
Council and the House of Representatives.
The
candidate, who contests in a State Legislative Council district, is known as
the candidate for the State Legislative Assembly seat while for the House of
Representatives, as the candidate for Parliamentary or House of Representatives
seat.
Those
who win the elections will be designated State Legislative Assembly members or
People’s Representatives depending on the level of the electoral district won.
A
member of the State Legislative Assemblies cannot at the same time represent
more than one electoral constituency. A people’s representative too, cannot be
a member for both the Parliamentary Assemblies (House of Representatives and
the Senate) or represent more than one electoral district.
The
total membership of the State Legislative Assembly varies from state to state
and this has to do with the issue of alignment of divisions or electoral constituencies
determined and identified by the Election Commission authorities. The same goes
for the membership of the House of Representatives.
Breakdown
by State of House Representative’ Membership
|
State
|
Membership
|
|
Perlis
|
3
|
|
Kedah
|
15
|
|
Kelantan
|
14
|
|
Terengganu
|
8
|
|
P. Pinang
|
13
|
|
Perak
|
24
|
|
Pahang
|
14
|
|
Selangor
|
22
|
|
F. T. Kuala Lumpur
|
11
|
|
F.T. Putrajaya
|
1
|
|
Negeri Sembilan
|
8
|
|
Melaka
|
6
|
|
Johor
|
26
|
|
F. T. Labuan
|
1
|
|
Sabah
|
25
|
|
Sarawak
|
28
|
|
Total
|
219
|
The Senate
Article
45 of the Federal Constitution provides that the members of the Senate also
known as senators are selected and appointed.
·
2
members for each State shall be elected in accordance with the Seventh Schedule
of the Federal Constitution (26 members)
·
2
members for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and 1 member for the Federal
Territory of Labuan and 1 member for the Federal Territory of Putrajaya shall
be appointed by the Yang di – Pertuan Agong; and
·
40
members shall be appointed by the Yang di – Pertuan Agong
Senators,
who are appointed, consist of those who have rendered excellent service in the
commerce, business, industry, agriculture, art or social welfare. Senators can
also be appointed from those who represent minority groups or people who can
represent the interests of the native tribes.
The
appointment of a Senator from this group is considered important in the
legislative context.
The
vast experiences in their respective fields can help the legislative body to
refine related aspects and this definitely helps the executive body in the
country’s administrative matters, based on the rules in the form of acts passed
by the House of Representatives.
This
wide experience is reinforced with the condition that a person can be appointed
as a Senator from the age of 30 and above.
The
duration in office of a Senator is different from that of a representative of
the people. The length of time in office of a member of the House of
Representatives is limited by dissolution of Parliament but not a Senator.
A
Senator can hold his post for 3 years, even during the period Parliament is
dissolved. However the post cannot be held for more than two terms that is, not
exceeding 6 years whether continuously or intermittently.
