He said there was no need for the government to hold a special sitting to table a constitutional amendment for an anti-hopping law as Parliament would reconvene in nine days.

“I am confident that there will be no more obstacles or arguments on the draft (bill).

“Time will be given to debate and pass the law,” Dayak Daily quoted him as saying.

“I am optimistic we can get approval from all MPs so that the law can be gazetted as soon as possible.”

FMT had reported recently that a handful of Cabinet “warlords” were trying to stall the bill from being passed before the next general election (GE15) as an “insurance” for them to be able to switch parties after the polls to continue remaining in power.

Previously, the Parliamentary special select committee had proposed that the bill be tabled at a one-day special sitting in early July, as opposed to waiting for the scheduled meeting from July 18 to Aug 4.

But Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob decided that it would not be necessary to hold a special sitting.

Wan Junaidi previously said that among the factors taken into consideration was the cost involved for a special sitting of the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara, which would amount to about RM1,077,600, excluding operating costs.

The anti-hopping law was one of the main conditions stipulated under the memorandum of understanding between Putrajaya and Pakatan Harapan last September.

It was supposed to be tabled last March but was delayed.

At the time, Wan Junaidi said the bill required “further deliberation” with stakeholders from Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional to ensure it could get sufficient support in Parliament.