CHAPTER VII. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION – People’s Direct Political Participation
Section 163
Eligible voters of no fewer than 10,000 shall have the right to sign a petition to the President of the Senate to cause the National Assembly to consider legislation under the provisions in Chapter 3 and Chapter 5 of this Constitution.
The petition must be accompanied by the Bill being proposed.
The rules and procedure for petition and scrutiny shall be in accordance with the provisions of the law.
At the stage of adopting the petition under paragraph 1 the House of Representatives and the Senate shall permit the Eligible voters to elucidate each petition. The extraordinary committee members shall be composed not less than one-third of the Eligible voters of the extraordinary committee.
Section 164
Eligible voters of no fewer than 20,000 can sign a petition to the President of the Senate under Section 274 to have a person removed from office under Section 270.
The petition under paragraph one must clearly state one by one the wrong-doings of the holder of office in question allegedly committed.
The rules and procedure and conditions for petition under paragraph one must be in accordance with the organic Act on counter corruption.
Section 165
An eligible voter has the right to vote in a referendum.
A referendum must be conducted under the following circumstances:
- Where the Council of Ministers is of the opinion that certain action may affect the interests of the nation or people, the Prime Minister with the consent of the Council of Ministers may seek advice of the President of the House or of the Senate before announcing the referendum in the Government Gazette.
- Where there is a law requiring a referendum:
The referendum under (1) or (2) can be either conclusive with a majority vote on the issue involved, or consultative to advise the Council of Ministers unless the law stipulates otherwise.
The vote in a referendum shall be for or against in the matter for which it is intended. It must not contradict the Constitution, nor be about an individual or a group of individuals.
Before a referendum, the State must provide adequate information, giving both those for and those against an equal opportunity to express their views.
The rules and procedure of a referendum shall be in accordance with the organic Act on referendum; that must at least be informed about the procedure, time, and the number of votes required to be decisive.
