Former Sabah chief minister Yong Teck Lee must vacate his Gaya parliamentary and Likas state assembly seats since the Federal Court dismissed his appeal against the ruling which found him guilty of breaching the Election Offences Act.

Dewan Rakyat Speaker Mohamed Zahir Ismail said today that, section 48(4) of the Federal Constitution specifically stated that an elected representative found guilty of such an act by a court would lose his seat 14 days after the judgment was made.

"Therefore the 14 days deadline is Sept 17. If by then there are no changes, he will cease as Gaya MP on Sept 18," said the speaker when asked to comment on the matter.

Mohamed Zahir said there was no necessity for him to declare the seat vacant on Sept 18 as the process of law would take its natural course.

Asked if a by-election will be called, he said that has to be decided by the Election Commission.

On the possibility of a royal pardon, the speaker said he was not sure whether this avenue applied to those found guilty of election breaches.

However, he added that, if an application for a pardon was made and permitted, then Yong will remain an MP until the Yang di-Pertuan Agong makes his decision.

No by-election in Likas

Meanwhile, a statement from the office of Sabah state assembly speaker Hassan Alban Sandukong said Yong is no longer the Likas state assembly representative as a result of the Federal Court decision.

According to a Bernama report, the statement said: "The Federal Court's decision is final. Datuk Yong Teck Lee is no longer the state assembly representative for Likas. A by-election is not necessary as a state election will be held in 15 months based on Section 21(5) of the Sabah constitution.

On Sept 3, a three-member Federal Court panel dismissed with costs Yong's application to appeal against the landmark decision of Justice Muhammad Kamil Awang in June 2001 which decared the election result of the Likas seat during the 1999 Sabah election as null and void.

Justice Muhammad Kamil had ruled that the electoral roll was tainted with illegal voters. He also said that the former chief minister was guilty of smearing a fellow candidate by using billboards.

The decision paved the way for a by-election which was held in July last year and saw Yong winning the seat again after the Kota Kinabalu High Court allowed his application for a stay of execution.

Earlier, Yong told reporters at the Parliament lobby that he would not attend the current Dewan Rakyat session until a decision is made on his MP status.

He said this is to avoid causing any "embarrassment to Parliament, to the chair, government or Barisan Nasional".

"For me to walk into the chamber, when Parliament is in session could provoke some to raise the issue...and it is not fair on the chair to be put in a position when the law is not," he added.

Yong is the president of the Barisan Nasional component party, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP).