PETALING JAYA: A civil society group today urged political parties to pledge in their manifestos for the 16th general election (GE16) to transfer the power to register, suspend and deregister parties from the Registrar of Societies (RoS) to the Election Commission (EC).
In a statement, Projek Sama said the move was necessary to prevent the RoS from being used to favour or penalise political parties based on their relationship with the federal government.
However, it said the EC must first be made impartial and accountable to Parliament, with a parliamentary select committee given the power to vet and recommend candidates for appointment as EC commissioners.
"The potential for opposition parties to be victimised through the home minister’s control of the RoS has persisted because all parties that were or are in the federal government want to keep that control available for use against their opponents.
"They harbour wishful thinking, like gamblers, that their fortunes will always be good and that they will always be in government."
The RoS deregistered Perikatan Nasional (PN) on Tuesday following a complaint by its component party, Bersatu, that it was denied the right to attend, speak and vote at a PN Supreme Council meeting on July 16.
Projek Sama said the issue pointed to a broader structural problem involving the home minister’s control over the RoS, which it said contributed to the "inconsistent" application of the Societies Act 1966 and created opportunities for the department to be used against political parties.
The group identified two key problems: the placement of the RoS under the home minister’s purview, and the minister’s power to exempt parties from provisions of the Societies Act.
According to Projek Sama, ministerial control creates the potential for political discrimination, while the power to grant exemptions allows preferential treatment.
As an example of preferential treatment, Projek Sama cited home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s decision in 2023 to exempt Umno from provisions of the Societies Act that could otherwise have led to its deregistration over its decision not to hold contests for the party presidency and deputy presidency.
Projek Sama said the problem predated the current administration and had persisted across successive governments.
It added that PAS, despite now raising concerns over the RoS, had not pushed to remove the home minister’s unchecked powers over party registration.
It said parties that had been in government, including PAS and Wawasan – whose members were previously in Bersatu – continued to support a system that left the federal government with control over the registration of political parties.
"Complaining about the RoS only when one suffers, without committing to dealing with the root cause of the problem, is hypocritical," it said.
"Talk is cheap. We call upon all political parties – especially those that have been victimised – to promise explicitly in their GE16 manifestos to undertake, push for or support such reform."