COMMENT | It is indeed a sign of mature politics that the controversies surrounding and criticisms of the Constitutional amendment bill to introduce the anti-hopping law led to a full day of parliamentary debate with 59 MPs taking part and the set-up of a Parliament Select Committee on the matter.

The public got to hear the concerns of all participating MPs and parties, with no one objecting to it. They can also be convinced that the government is not simply dragging its foot on this.

The political wisdom of Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar and the bipartisan Joint Steering Committee on Transformation and Political Stability, better known as the “MOU committee”, is commendable.

However, can anyone guarantee that the select committee would deliver a praiseworthy bill by end of May? It depends on whether the select committee is consciously avoiding the mistakes made by the MOU committee.

The anti-hopping law committee should steadfastly take the following four steps to avoid the traps set by...