Khir Toyo for Sg Besar?

(The Sun Daily) – Former Selangor mentri besar Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo’s (pix) name is rumoured to have emerged as being among several being considered by Barisan Nasional to be its candidate for the vacant Sungai Besar parliamentary seat in Selangor.

However, Article 48(1)(e) of the Federal Constitution clearly states that a person is disqualified from being an MP if he has been convicted of an offence by a court of law and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than a year or to a fine of not less than RM2,000 and has not received a pardon.

Furthermore, a convicted person is barred from standing for public office within five years upon his release from prison.

Khir, a former Umno supreme council member, was on Sept 29 last year, convicted of corruption for obtaining for himself and his wife two lots of land and a bungalow in Seksyen 7, Shah Alam, at a price RM3 million lower than its value.

He was sentenced to a year’s in jail, but six months after serving his jail term he was, on March 29, given a remission for good behaviour and granted parole for a period of two months.

According to former Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus, the former MB would be automatically disqualified under Article 48(1)(e).

When contacted, an Election Commission officer told theSun the issue had arisen and its chairman, Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah, had discussed Khir’s possible candidacy with the commission’s legal adviser.

“However, for now, we do not want to disclose what transpired during the meeting. The chairman will make the necessary announcement if the need arises,” said the officer.

Both the Sungai Besar and Kuala Kangsar parliamentary seats fell vacant following the demise of Datuk Noriah Kasnon and Datuk Wan Mohammad Khairil Anuar Wan Ahmad in a helicopter crash in Sarawak on May 5.

The EC is set to meet on Friday to discuss the possible nomination and polling dates for the two seats.

It is claimed that despite Khir’s conviction, he enjoys strong support in Sungai Besar and may be a pull factor for BN to win votes in a seat where its majority has been reducing from 7,349 in 2004, to 5,009 in 2008, and a mere 399 in the 2013 general election.

Khir, who is of half-Indonesian descent, was born in Sungai Burung, Tanjung Karang – a few minutes’ drive from Sungai Besar, and was a three-term assemblyman for the Sungai Panjang state seat within the Sungai Besar parliamentary constituency.

Attempts to contact Khir for comment were unsuccessful.

Apart from Khir, it is learnt that six other names have been mentioned as possible BN candidates, including Umno Wanita and Youth officials.

Umno Sungai Besar division chief Datuk Jamal Md Yusof was initially tipped to contest, but has since confirmed that he would not. Also mentioned was Sungai Panjang assemblyman Budiman Mohd Zohdi.