Sarawak National Party (Snap) vice president Dr Judson Tagal today claimed that the appointment of the party's two additional central executive commitee (CEC) members by embattled president James Wong Kim Min was unconstitutional.

He said that although the last triennial general meeting in 2000 had agreed to amend the constitution to increase the number of appointed CEC members from five to seven, the Registrar of Societies (ROS) has not given its approval to the change because party secretary-general Justine Jinggut failed to submit a copy of the amendment to the regulatory body.

According to the Societies Act, a copy of the amendment to the party constitution must be submitted to the ROS within 28 days after receiving endorsement from its delegates.

According to Judson, an assistant minister, "the secretary-general never lodged with the ROS the agreed amendment for the registrar's approval". A check with the registrar also confirmed that no submission had been made for the constitutional amendment.

Null and void

The Snap vice-president — speaking at a media conference in the presence of two other party vice-presidents, William Mawan, a state minister, and Peter Nyarok, an assistant state minister — said after the party's national council meeting in 2002 and the recent one in February this year, the president without consultation with the CEC-elected members appointed seven members to a tenure of one-year each.

He added that since the amendment to the constitution had yet to be approved by the ROS, all resolutions passed by the CEC with the votes of the seven CEC-appointed members were "invalid, null and void".

"The CEC itself is still valid. Only the amendments to increase the appointed members to seven under Article X(1)(g) of the constitution is invalid. Thus all matters that had included the voting of the seven invalidly appointed members are not valid and are null and void."

This, according to Judson, is contrary to the statement by the party's senior vice-president Richard Wong, the state assemblyperson for Limbang and the president's eldest son, that the party has been following the constitution.

"It would follow that the decision of the CEC, which include the votes of the seven appointed members, to expel the former treasurer-general of the party, Tiong King Sing, the member of parliament for Bintulu, was also unconstitutional."

Last month, after a CEC meeting, the aging party president told a media conference that the expulsion decision had been taken by a two-third majority, after the walkout of nine elected CEC members, including eight elected representatives, before the vote was taken.

The CEC has 23 members, of which five are appointed by the president. The president, deputy president, senior vice-president, secretary-general (appointed by president), treasurer-general (appointed by president) and the youth and women's section heads (appointed automatically as vice president in the CEC by virtue of their posts) are principal officers who automatically become part of the CEC composition.

The rest are elected, including seven vice-presidents, all of whom are now opposed to the president's leadership.

According to observers, the Snap quarrels have now turned into hair splitting over the finer points of the party constitution.

EGM to be held

In a related development, Mawan told the media conference that Snap's Senadin division would go ahead with its extraordinary general meeting in Miri on May 19, despite a notice published in today's Borneo Post from the party's secretary-general that the EGM if it proceeds will be illegal.

The seceretary-general said the EGM is without the approval of party headquarters as required under the party's constitution, but Mawan disputes this, saying that it can be held on the request of not less than 20 members of the division which is complied with by the division.

Mawan said he and three other senior party members will attend the EGM.

Wong is still in Australia receiving medical attention for a knee problem. Asked if he knew when the president would return to Sarawak, Mawan said he had no idea. Asked also if he and his group would be prepared to meet with Wong, he retorted: "Does he want to meet us?"

He added that Wong had a different set of advisers around him and doubted he would want to listen to his faction.