MUHYIDDIN TO FACE SCRUTINY ON MP DEFECTIONS
On the other hand, the situation might be more complex for Muhyiddin at the Bersatu convention as he has several issues to deal with, including addressing leadership transition within the party.
Analysts told CNA that Muhyiddin – who is the party president – will have the unenviable task of explaining the situation and circumstances that led four Members of Parliament (MPs) to state their support for Mr Anwar.
The four are Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman, Kuala Kangsar MP Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid, Gua Musang MP Azizi Abu Naim, and Jeli MP Zahari Kechik.
While all four said they would remain loyal to Bersatu, they were supporting Mr Anwar so that they could secure allocations for their respective constituencies.
Bersatu has already suspended Mr Iskandar and Mr Suhaili for four and six years respectively, while the other two parliamentarians have been referred to the party’s disciplinary committee.
Dr Jeniri told CNA that it was very important for Muhyiddin to ensure that Bersatu is stabilised and that the members have confidence that no more parliamentarians will switch their support.
“He has to send a strong message to the political leadership in Bersatu. It is important that no more MPs will switch support as this will dent the image of the leadership of Bersatu,” he said.
Ms Welsh contends that Bersatu is also facing a potential split within the party as the contenders to replace Muhyiddin – secretary-general Hamzah Zainuddin and supreme council member Azmin Ali – are taking very different tacts to garner support.
Ms Welsh added that three main issues for Bersatu this time was keeping the party together, the leadership transition, and a recalibration of its relationship with Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS).
Bersatu is part of the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition with PAS and Parti Gerakan Rakyat (Gerakan).
“We will see that the focus is on the erosion of different members of Bersatu to support Anwar’s government and the split within the party. This will be a very important issue for Muhyiddin to address.
“The other questions of leadership transition and the overall relationship within the PN coalition are likely only to be touched at the surface levels. What’s really at stake for Muhyiddin is whether the party can still be a major player in the national stage and basically maintain its integrity as a party,” said Ms Welsh.
Many observers have positioned PAS as the principal party for the Malays in Malaysia in place of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).
Separately, Dr Sivamurugan said there would be those who would want Bersatu to review its constitution to prevent any more parliamentarians from switching their support.
He added that improving the ties at the grassroots among PN component parties was also important as there were some in Bersatu who were not satisfied when it came to working together with PAS.
“Maybe the top leaders are working closely but it is how to improve this at a lower level,” said Dr Sivamurugan.
According to a recent report by The Star, the grassroots of both parties are shunning one another following disagreements over strategy and cooperation during the campaigning for the state polls in August and by-elections this year.
Source: CNA
