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The Kelantan state assembly Speaker Abdullah Yakub made the announcement this afternoon, reported Harian Metro.
Mat Yusoff, from Umno, won the Nengirri seat in the last general election after defeating PKR’s Mohamad Azihan Che Seman.
Abdullah was quoted by the Malay daily as saying his office had received a letter from the Selangor Insolvency Department on Wednesday informing him that the Umno assemblyman had been declared bankrupt on Nov 9 last year.
“Article 31 (1) of the state constitution bars a person who has not resolved his bankruptcy status from being an assemblyman.
“Starting today, I declare the Nengirri seat vacant,” he said.
Abdullah said he would send a letter to the state Election Commission (EC) on Sunday.
When asked on the possibility of a by-election, the speaker said that would depend on the commission.
However, according to the EC regulations, if a vacancy occurs when the tenure for the current state assembly is less than two years, then the seat is left vacant until the next election.
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