Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
KUALA LUMPUR (Politics Now!) - As Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim rushes for a photo-op with Suhaili Abdul Rahman , the opposition's MP for Labuan, to claim credit for a 'backdoor' move that he and his Pakatan Rakyat allies appear to believe is a 'brilliant' strategy that can help them cling to power, it is another ally - Umno - that is scolding them for encouraging party-hopping instead of upholding and defending the spirit and intent of the recently passed Anti-Hopping Law.
It is an extremely ironic development that shows how the pendulum has swung in Malaysia's hyperactive political scene. Politically, the criticism from the influential Umno Youth Chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh is a major red flag - signaling that the ineffective Anwar's time as PM may be up sooner than expected.
Muhamad Akmal's alarm may be justifiable as the rising public disgust for the current spate of backdoor 'defections' also sets a trap for Anwar and his government, in which Umno is a key party, with a second 'Sheraton Move' speculated to be on the way. The Move refers to a coup led by Bersatu chief Muhyiddin Yassin in 2020 that toppled the Pakatan Rakyat government then led by Mahathir Mohamad.
But while the Move succeeded, Muhyiddin and his successor Umno's Ismail Sabri could never shake off the notoriety and accusations of political treachery associated with it. However, Muhyiddin is now gaining public sympathy and Anwar public odium due to the de-facto defections - and a Sheraton Move 2.0 will likely be brushed off this time as a good lesson in humility for Anwar and his allies.
“Enough with the political drama before this, the people are tired and fed-up," Akmal wrote on Facebook.
“The Anti-Hopping Law came about with the aim of preventing political frogs from hopping about as they liked so that there would be no protracted political dramas and elected representatives could focus on serving the people who voted for them and the party they represent.
“But it seems like despite the passing of the Anti-Hopping Law, these frogs continue to hop using a different name - which is to support the government without exiting their party. Although the term used is different, the aim of these frogs is the same, which is to hop.”
THANKS FOR THE MILLIONS!
Suhaili, a member of the Bersatu party led by former premier Muhyiddin Yassin, had declared 'full support' for Anwar and his 'Madani' government, in which Umno is a part of.
However, he refused to quit his seat and also declared he would stay a "loyal" member of Bersatu - in a move slammed as a 'de-facto' defection or a backdoor move to gain federal funding by taking advantage of loopholes that should have been plugged by Anwar and his government.
Otherwise, the very Anti-Hopping Law that Anwar and his Pakatan allies had fought for would become a mockery as well as a monumen of political hypocrisy and dishonesty.
Nonetheless, neither the DAP, Amanah nor Anwar's own PKR party that form the Pakatan coalition, which is the core bloc in Malaysia's unity government of coalitions, have kept a deafening silence.
Even concerns voiced by civil society and reform groups that such backdoor moves reeked of money politics or political bribery have fallen om deaf ears - especially since Anwar is also blocking opposition lawmakers from access to the federal funds that they have a right to claim on behalf of their constituencies.
Suhaili had a day ago confirmed he has now been given the same access to allocations as government MPs, worth millions of ringgit, even though he is from the opposition.
“Thank you Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for keeping your promise,” Malaysiakini reported Suhaili as saying.
'CALCULATED MOVES' YIELDED 4 BACKDOOR DEFECTIONS?
Given the huge amounts involved, it's not surprising that another Bersatu MP, Zahari Kechik who won the Jeli seat at last year's general election, has followed hot on the heels of Suhaili - making it a total of 4 opposition MPs who have now pulled the same trick.
“It’s so calculated and so well-organised. And it relates directly to payments from the government (to MPs who have aligned their support to the government)," Bersatu's Tasek Gelugor MP Wan Saiful Wan Jan slammed Anwar.
“If he (Anwar) doesn’t agree to money politics, he would have announced from the start that any MPs who support him will not be given allocations. However, he did not deny it. In fact, he welcomed the MPs’ maturity (when speaking) at the Parliament. Hence, he (Anwar) is not a person of integrity to speak about it (integrity)."
Written by Wong Choon Mei, Politics Now!
Politics Now!
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