Shahruddin resigns as Deputy Works Minister
Published on: Friday, June 05, 2020
By: NST
Kuala Lumpur: Datuk Dr Shahruddin Salleh (pic) has resigned as the Deputy Works Minister, effectively Thursday.In a letter sighted by the New Straits Times, Shahruddin sent his resignation note to Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.ADVERTISEMENT
“I would like to thank the Prime Minister for allowing me to be part of your cabinet. I will remain seated at the Perikatan Nasional backbenchers seat,” he wrote. Later, in a statement to the media, Shahruddin revealed the reasons behind his decision.
“Today is June 4, 2020, and I officially announce my resignation effective today. I have made an inaccurate political analysis (ijtihad politik) by joining the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government.
Shahruddin, who is also Sri Gading Member of Parliament, said he had reached the decision after a “careful consideration” and that he wished to undo his mistake of leaving Pakatan Harapan. “I should have prioritised the decision made by Sri Gading voters who picked PH in the 14th General Election.
“As the first step to rectify the mistake, I have decided to resign from my (ministerial) post which was an appointment made by a Prime Minister (Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin) from the PN government.”ADVERTISEMENT
The former Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia secretary-general had on Tuesday, said he was prepared to relinquish his government portfolio if it would strengthen the party, currently divided by political camps.
While lauding PN’s decision to support Muhyiddin as the Prime Minister, Shahruddin said the coalition had remained unregistered with the Registrar of Societies.
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He claimed that such a status had cast ambiguity on the decision to sack Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and four other MPs from Bersatu for colluding with the opposition in the Dewan Rakyat.
Bersatu is currently split into two factions, with one supporting Dr Mahathir and the other is with Muhyiddin.
Last Friday, Shahruddin met Dr Mahathir at Bersatu headquarters in Petaling Jaya, and the media was told that he would join a press conference that day together with Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Functions) Datuk Seri Mohd Redzuan Md Yusof for “an important announcement”.
However, the media conference was never held. Redzuan in a statement later that day said he had never called for the press conference.
Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad held a meeting with top leaders from Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Parti Warisan Sabah Thursday, amid intensifying rumours that the pact is on the way to achieving majority in the Dewan Rakyat.
The meeting which starts at 4pm at the Albukhary Foundation headquarters here was attended by DAP Secretary-General Lim Guan Eng and its national secretary Anthony Loke, Parti Amanah Negara President Mohamad Sabu, Warisan President Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal, and disputed Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir and former secretary-general Datuk Marzuki Yahya.
One glaring absence, however, was PKR president and Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, or any representative from the PH party.
A PKR source who wished to remain anonymous confirmed Anwar’s absence, but declined to provide any reason why.
“PKR did not send anyone to the meeting today,” said the source.
Photos of the meeting were also posted in Dr Mahathir’s former aide Adam Mukhriz Mohd Muhayeddin’s Facebook account.
The meeting ended around 6pm, with a surprise visit by Datuk Shahruddin Md Salleh, who just recently resigned as deputy minister from the Perikatan Nasional government.
It has been rumoured that PH Plus – a moniker for a loose coalition that includes PH, the faction of former component Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia now led by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and Warisan – has managed to gain the upper hand in the Dewan Rakyat, barely a few months after they lost power during the February political crisis.
However, there are still disputes within the coalition over its prime minister candidate, with both Dr Mahathir and Anwar’s camps said to still be at loggerheads over the matter.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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Anwar and PKR had previously snubbed a press conference by the new loose coalition after the half-day Parliament sitting on May 18.
A few days later, Anwar explained his absence from the event, saying that the event was not a PH media programme.