That is why I said in earlier threads that Pakatan Rakyat should not register as a society under Societies Act because once you do so, you PR are entirely under the control/regulatory regime of the Registrar of Society (“ROS”) [whose portfolio is under the Minister of Home Affairs] and the ROS can arbiter in your internal affairs and decide in a tussle on who it wants to recognise as office bearers independent of courts.

ROS knows it has got this kind of draconian powers from the PV Das case against M Kayveas on who should be recognised as leader of PPP.

By an amendment in 1990 a new clause 18C was inserted in Societies Act by which no court shall have any jurisdiction to entertain or determine any suit, application, question or proceeding on any ground regarding the validity of a decision of a political party relating to affairs of the party, its constitution and rules – and here’s the catch: the “decision of a political party on any matter relating to the affairs of the party ….” relating to which the Courts cannot review or question is (as decided by Court of Appeal for DAS/Kayveas case in 2003) imputed to what the Registrar of Society determines and interprets is the actual “decision of a political party on any matter relating to the affairs of the party ….” on who shall be recognised as legitimate office bearers after hearing the contending sides and perusing the documents….This also means that by this particular inerpretaion of 18C by the Court of Appeal, if the ROS (or by extension his Boss) favours Chua as Deputy President, Liow has no chance at all to go to Court to challenge ROS’s decision because the courts will say they have no jurisdiction to hear his grouse because Parliament intended 18C to exclude Courts from question party affairs (as determined by ROS).

This I know especially from the vehemence with which of some occasional BN sympathisers/cybertrooper who visited this blog who launched an attack (citing Constitution and Law) to contradict what I earlier said about the Societies Act, and why PR should not register as a society.

That is when ROS said he would waive the 7 membership requirement and change it to 3 for PR’s sake because your component parties are of national importance, don’t jump so quickly at invitation of a bearer of gifts from opposite side whose gifts may include a poisoned fruit that may possibly do you guys in, in the future! Draw a lesson from MCA Liow’s present experience.

Liow wants to go to the courts to seek a declaration against ROS decision. He will argue on section 18C. 18C says that for a political society, its “decision or any person authorized by it or by its constitution or rules or regulations made thereunder on the interpretation of its constitution, rules or regulations or on any matter relating to the affairs of the party shall be final and conclusive and such decision shall not be challenged, appealed against, reviewed, quashed or called in question in any court on any ground, and no court shall have jurisdiction to entertain or determine any suit, application, question or proceeding on any ground regarding the validity of such decision.” Liow will argue that he’s not asking Courts to challenge political party MCA’s decision; he will argue he is merely seeking a declaration that Registrar of Societies (ROS) is acting outside his powers under societies Act to decide on who should be Deputy President of MCA; that he is not challenging political party MCA’s decision but challenging the ROS’s determination of who is Deputy President, thereby superimposing his determination over the Party’s!

Liow will lose based on existing law. Perhaps he is trying to boost morale of his supporters but whatever objections he raises had already been covered in 2003 Court of Appeal ruling in the case of P.V.DAS for PPP against ROS and M. Kayveas. It won’t work. The argument is:

1. Parliament intends by 18C to exclude court’s interference in and adjudication of political society’ internal affairs.

2. When political society’s internal affairs are turbulent with office bearers engaged in intra-Party fighting without being able to resolve the issue within the Party itself, definitely they will need an outside arbiter to help resolve;

3. Since the outside arbiter cannot be the courts because 18C says Courts cannot interfere with a internal affairs of a political party, it is natural that the arbiter will be the Regulator, in this case the Registrar of Societies since the political party is a registered political society under ROS regulatory regime.

4. To allow Liow (as earlier case P.V.DAS) to go to Court to challenge and overturn ROS’s decision favouring Chua in MCA (and Kayveas in earlier case) will tantamount to allowing courts to (back door) indirectly interfere with the internal affairs of a political party which 18 C expressly says courts cannot (front door) directly interfere. By extension, to allow Liow (as earlier case P.V.DAS) to go to Court to challenge and overturn ROS’s decision favouring Chua in MCA (and Kayveas in earlier case) will tantamount to thwarting the will and intent of Parliament not to allow courts’ interference (direct or indirect) of internal affairs of political society.

On these grounds Liow’s application to Court to challenge ROS will not be entertained. Neither could he likely resolve this leadership struggle matter even if CC member Wong Nai Chee’s prediction that the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) of MCA would “definitely happen”. This is because the delegates’ support from Ong Tee Kiat and Chua Soi Lek is likely to overwhelm that of Liow.

Because legitimacy of law, courts are thrown to doubts by cases like what happened in Perak Legislative Assembly having two MBs and two Speakers, so in MCA case, there may emerge a phenomenon of 2 deputy Presidents continuing their struggle, whatever the Courts say on section 18C of the Societies Act….

In light of what is happening to Liow, and the way ROS flexes its muscles, I am surprsied that Pakatan Rakyat is still proceeding to register the opposition as a political society subjecting yourself to the regime of ROS.

This is what The MalaysiaInsider Nov 4 reported: ‘The Malaysian Insider understands that officials from the PR alliance handed in their application to be made a formal coalition to the Registrar of Societies (ROS) some time earlier this week. According to government sources, some 10 names each from DAP, PAS and PKR were listed in the registration form, together with a list of common objectives, which are expected to be laid out when the alliance holds its first convention next month. A logo bearing a “rising sun” was also tendered — signalling a “new dawn” for the country — as the fledgling opposition front’s symbol against BN’s dacing, or scale. The PR bloc believes its application this time will pass muster, based on the new stand taken by the Registrar of Societies Datuk Md Alias Kalil. Md Alias had publicly stated that the previous reading of Section 2 of the Societies Act 1966, which states any coalition of political parties must have at least seven political parties as members to be registered did not apply.’

See link:
http://www3.themalaysianinsider.com/lite/articles_headlines.php?id=malaysia/42253-pakatan-finally-applies-to-be-formal-coalition.

I wish now to reiterate :

1. ROS made flip-flop decisions. At beginning, he said they could not decide on who’s deputy president. Then all of a sudden before the MCA CC meeting, he officially decided. Doesn’t this hint of political influence? who is ROS’s boss? You want PR to be regulated by ROS who in turn is under Home Minister? In other wards PR to be under BN’s Minister of Home Affairs’ regultory regime??? That’s very clever on PR’s part!

2. “A logo bearing a “rising sun” was also tendered — signalling a “new dawn” for the country — as the fledgling opposition front’s symbol against BN’s dacing, or scale.” – MalaysiaInsider.

I can understand a common logo will help campaigning – as in Bagan Pinang. Must the Question is: To have a comon logo must you register the whole PR coalition as a political Society?

Correct me if I am wrong on this but my general impression is that BN’s dacing was registered with the Elections Comission and BN itself is not registered as a political society under ROS’s regulatory regime.

Unless I am wrong on either score, why is it, for the sake of a conmon logo, that PR must go to such extent of registering itself as a political society and be subject to ROS’s, and by extension your political opponent, the Home Minister’s indirect governance when:

(a) you jolly well know that BN is nopw probing all your weaknesses to save itself since it cannot re-invent fast enough;

(b) BN itself is not regsitered under Societies Act but you PR chooses to do so (As they say fools rush in where angles fear to tread!) and

(c) what happens in MCA, the ROS’s interference and Liows predicament have all happened to warn you of the prospects you face in similar situation?

I cannot for the life of me understand the course PR is taking!

Sorry for many typo errors in my post #50 on page 1. Just fed up with what I don’t understand.

#3 by OrangRojak – “…they call the Rising Sun
And it’s been the ruin ..of many a poor boy
And God.. know..I’m one”.

That makes Pakatan Rakyat – “the Animals”! Hahaha.

When Election Commissioner says, PR you can use common logo if you register first…” did the Election Commissioner suggest you register the common logo with Election Commission or they ask you register as a society under Societies Act – which is th case?

If the case of the latter, which I doubt, why don’t you ask Election Commissioner – what about BN’s use of the dacing logo without having BN registered as a political society under Societies Act??? How can there be different treatment in view of article 8(1) federal Constitution requiring equality before the law including elections laws for all?

Or PR has some other agenda – trying to iron out the differences between disparate parties like PAS vs DAP by having common constitution for all 3 registered with the Registrar of Societies (ROS)? Or the “Rising Sun” flag of Imperial Japan like DAP’s rising Rocket to cast a solar eclipse on PAS’s full moon or PKR’s half moon? Perhaps If thats the intent, it will, in circumstances of Pakatan Rakyat being registered a political society, give the ROS plenty of leverage/leeway to arbiter on content and meaning of rights and powers and obligations between PKR, PAS and DAP inter-se within PR, and to play one against the other just like what happened in MCA….