Twentytwo13

State elections: Malaysians should press for an amicable relationship between state and federal government

The upcoming state elections in Peninsular Malaysia have been dubbed by certain quarters as a “referendum” on whether or not the current ‘unity’ government at the federal level has the necessary legitimacy in the eyes of the voters.

Rightly or wrongly, we cannot deny that the setting up of the ‘unity’ government in the aftermath of the 15th General Election, had raised quite a few eyebrows, mainly due to the decision made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to join forces with Barisan Nasional (BN).

Since losing its two-third majority in Parliament in GE12 in 2008, BN is no longer the dominant political force to be reckoned with.

The political backsliding that BN is experiencing could well be attributed to a series of financial scandals, political arrogance, and a high degree of complacency due to the feeling of invincibility brought about by being in power for a long time.

Pakatan Harapan (PH), on the other hand, has always fashioned itself as a progressive and reform-minded coalition, and its public enemy number one was BN.

When PH decided to partner with BN post-GE15, the narrative that the former was fighting to reform the government and eliminate corruption, seems hollow, if not hypocritical.

Whether or not the upcoming state elections is a “referendum” in favour or against the ‘unity’ government, in my mind is a second-order question. The fundamental question is that whether we, as Malaysians, understand the workings of our government.

For starters, we need to understand that post-colonial Malaysia had opted for a federation, rather than a unitary state. More specifically, the Malaysian Constitution made a provision for a three-tier governmental structure. At the lowest level is the local government, followed by the state, and the federal government.

Eligible voters had the right to choose their representatives at all three levels of government until the local government election was abandoned in the 1960s.

Having a three-tier government means that the division of powers between the state and federal governments is clearly spelt out in the Constitution. Nevertheless, the politics of federalism, as practiced in Malaysia, has not received the kind of attention it deserves. Even when scholars had written on federalism in Malaysia, they failed to reach a consensus on how to characterise it.

But one thing is sure. Federalism, as practiced in Malaysia, has a built-in bias in favour of the federal government.

The federal government holds so much power, and dominates the political system to such an extent that it can determine the survival of the constituent states.

Unlike the United States of America, Canada, Australia, Japan, and India, the Malaysian Constitution provides for a powerful central government.

For example, states have absolutely no power to prevent a constitutional amendment. That is the exclusive domain of the federal Parliament. Second, the federal government can use emergency provisions to suspend state rights under Article 150.

Third, Article 71 (3) allows the federal government to amend a state constitution if there is non-compliance by a state with the federal Constitution. Article 75 provides that if any state law is inconsistent with federal law, the federal law shall prevail, whilst Article 76 allows the federal government to make laws pertaining to state matters if it promotes the uniformity of laws, or if such is requested by the states.

Over the years, the Constitution has been amended to facilitate centralisation, including the moving of water services to the concurrent list from the state list (of the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution).

The Senate, which was intended to be the “house of the states” has also had its composition changed significantly, such that the ratio of central to state appointments is now 44:26.

Put in another way, the upcoming state election is ultimately about choosing our state representatives and the setting up of state governments. It has no bearing whatsoever on the composition of the Dewan Rakyat.

Having said that, we need to remind the ‘unity’ government that Pakatan Harapan, in its attempt to recognise and respect state autonomy, had, in its GE14 manifesto (Buku Harapan), included a specific commitment towards restoring the spirit of federalism.

The manifesto committed to respecting the existing Ninth Schedule within the Federal Constitution 1957, which determines the division of powers between the federal and state governments and minimises any further centralisation.

In the run-up to the 2023 state elections, Twentytwo13 has partnered with the Centre for Policy Research, Universiti Sains Malaysia, to offer readers research-based analyses and insights.

Established in 1974, the Centre for Policy Research is Malaysia’s oldest social science research centre. It serves as a resource centre for information and analysis of critical issues of common concern, bringing people together to exchange views, build expertise, and develop policy options.