More MPs expected to jump
Published on: Sunday, February 28, 2021
By: NST
More opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) are expected to exit their current parties to support the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government. - Bernama file pic
Kuala Lumpur: More opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) are expected to exit their current parties to support the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government.Two PKR MPs are supposedly jumping ship soon while at least four Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) lawmakers are currently negotiating with PN to join the ruling coalition, according to a NST report.
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Sources within Pakatan Harapan (PH) revealed that the two PKR MPs are known supporters of former PKR Deputy President Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, who is now PN Information Chief.
“Everyone knows these two (MPs) are Azmin’s people. They are just waiting for the right time to jump.
“Let’s see if Azmin can help these two get seats in the 15th General Election (GE15),” the source said.
The NST has learnt that the two are non-Malay MPs from PKR – one from the peninsula and the other from a Borneo state. Attempts to reach them have so far been unsuccessful.
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A source in PN Sabah said between four and six Warisan MPs are keen to join the PN fold but are currently facing “hiccups”.
“It is taking longer than we expected but we are fairly confident all issues can be ironed out soon,” the source said.
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Political analysts see party hopping as an issue that could not be resolved as long as there was no anti-hopping law.
Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Prof Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said: “In Malaysian politics, numbers matter. We have seen many MPs jumping here and there since 2020 and although they were heavily criticised in the beginning, nothing much has happened to them now.
“Firstly, we don’t have an anti-hopping act and secondly, it has always been up to the MPs to decide whether to stay or leave their respective parties because what is important is their political career.
“In our political context, it is not against the law, which is why this is the way things are now,” he said.
Universiti Malaya’s Prof Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi said such a move has been expected ever since Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah said Parliament could convene during the Emergency.
Meanwhile, a Sabah PH youth leader has taken aim at PN amid reports of middlemen from the ruling coalition trying to woo MPs from PKR to cross over.
Sabah PH Youth Secretary Razeef Rakimin charged that PN needed to stop “harassing” opposition elected representatives and instead focus on the bigger issues plaguing the nation.
Razeef, who is also the Sabah PKR Youth Information Chief, said while the present PN administration must accept the fact it did not have the majority support of MPs, it must nevertheless focus on addressing the Covid-19 pandemic and reviving the economy.
He said the opposition is trying its best to avoid politicking while at the same time wanting to work with the Government to fight the pandemic.
“But to this day PN is still attempting to pull opposition reps (to join them) by offering various political rewards in order to remain in power,” he said in Kota Kinabalu, Saturday.
“In our situation now, is power more important compared to the people’s welfare?”
Razeef also reminded opposition MPs, particularly those in PH, not to betray the mandate given to them by the people.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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