LETTERS: An election manifesto carries no legal value in the eyes of the law. Therefore, voters must be extra cautious about all the sweet promises in any election manifesto by any political party.
It would be very difficult for voters to take legal action to force those who come up with an election manifesto to fulfil all the promises in it because the document has no legal force. In 2013, the Court of Appeal held that an election manifesto is not legally enforceable.
Following this landmark ruling, the three-member panel of Court of Appeal judges, led by Datuk Seri Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus struck out a civil suit brought by a group of single mothers, who were seeking RM10.9 million in allowances over the Selangor government's alleged failure to fulfil its manifesto presented for the 2008 General Election.
Thus, voters should not put their full trust in any election manifesto. Nevertheless, any election candidate or political party has a moral obligation to the people to make good on all of their sweet promises.
As the Malay saying goes: "Manusia dipegang kepada janjinya" (A person is held to his or her promises). Thus, to become an honourable and respected politician, promises must be fulfilled.
In time, we also need to re-consider our position over the legal status of election manifestos to protect the rights and interests of voters.
A new set of rules is needed if our nation is to become a good example of democracy.
The Election Commission (EC) could consider creating a special committee to analyse this issue.
Amendments to the Election Offenses Act or any law relevant to the election process should be considered to make the election manifesto binding on the maker.
Once an election manifesto has legal force, politicians will become more serious when making promises to the masses.
DR MUZAFFAR SYAH MALLOW
Associate Professor
Faculty of Syariah & Law
Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times