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monarch or Yang di-Pertuan Agong for
a period of five years. Malaysia has a
non-political, professional civil service, army and
police and also an independent judiciary.
The Malaysian Parliament comprises the Senate (Dewan
Negara) and the House of Representatives (Dewan
Rakyat). The Senators, whether appointed or elected,
serve a six-year term, while members of the House of
Representatives are elected for a five-year term in
a single member constituency system. Since gaining
its Independence from Britain on 31 August 1957,
free and fair elections to the House of
Representatives have been held regularly every five
years or less.
Constitutionally, a fresh general election must be
held within five years of the preceding polls. The
tenth general election was held on 29 November 1999.
Malaysia has an excellent record of parliamentary
democracy. The country has been ruled by the
National Front (Barisan Nasional) coalition
dominated by the United Malays National Organisation
(UMNO) since the first general election. Initially
known as the Alliance Party, the coalition consisted
of UMNO, Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) and
Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC). In 1971, it was
expanded to create the Barisan Nasional, which
presently comprises 14 political parties.
This Malaysian Formula, achieved over 42 years, has
spawned political stability, which in turn has made
Malaysia into an attractive location for foreign
investors and benefited its economic growth. |
