KUALA LUMPUR – Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the amendments to Part III of the Federal Constitution relating to citizenship will be tabled later in this Dewan Rakyat session.
The proposed amendments would involve changes to the Federal Constitution that will no longer give citizenship by operation of law, or automatically, to foundlings, stateless children adopted by Malaysian parents, and children born out of wedlock.
In today’s parliamentary written reply to Young Syefura Othman (Bentong-PH), Saifuddin said that the amendment bill was reviewed and approved by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) on February 2.
The bill to be tabled, which consists of 12 clauses, has been approved for amendment by the Sabah and Sarawak state governments, as well as the Conference of Rulers, he said.
Yesterday, Saifuddin said he was confident that the proposed constitutional amendments will be passed with a two-thirds majority in the lower House.
He said he would explain in detail the purpose of the amendments to MPs in a series of consultations, and hoped these briefings would address concerns and objections that have been raised.
The unity government currently has more than two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat. Any changes to the Federal Constitution require votes from two-thirds of the total 222 MPs.
Meanwhile, some lawmakers from the unity government such as Hassan Abdul Karim (Pasir Gudang), Ramkarpal Singh (Bukit Gelugor), and Howard Lee (Ipoh Timur) have opposed the amendments, which they find “regressive” and akin to punishing the children in question. – March 12, 2024