KUALA LUMPUR – The federal government’s refusal to vacate the six parliamentary seats, held by six rogue Bersatu MPs who were sacked by the party, is driven by fear of losing more by-elections, said Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Speaking at Bersatu’s convention in Selayang, the party president said that the unity government, despite all its power, is “actually very weak”.
The former prime minister also said that he had never witnessed a ruling political party suffer such a devastating loss, citing the recently concluded Sg Bakap by-election, where Perikatan Nasional retained the seat with a majority of 4,267 votes against Pakatan Harapan.
“It is strange that despite all the power they possess, they lost in such a manner.
“That is why they are afraid to declare the vacancy of the six parliamentary seats and a state seat that are (currently) held by the former Bersatu members – or (as we call them) traitors who went against the Federal Constitution
“They (unity government) are willing to go against the Federal Constitution that they fought for and drafted because they are afraid of losing,” Muhyiddin said in his speech.
On Wednesday, Muhyiddin said in Dewan Rakyat that Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul had decided not to vacate the seats of six former Bersatu MPs.
The lawmakers in question are Datuk Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang), Datuk Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Labuan), Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), Zahari Kechik (Jeli), Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar), and Datuk Zulkafperi Hanafi (Tg Karang).
The Bersatu leader accused Johari of “tarnishing” the constitution by not vacating the seats held by the six MPs, who were sacked from the party after declaring support for the government.
He also said that the party’s appointed legal experts would take appropriate action to uphold the law and the party’s constitution by challenging Johari’s decision in court.
Separately, Muhyiddin also said that he held discussions and negotiations with party members to avoid contests for the party’s top positions in the upcoming October elections, aiming to preserve intra-party harmony.
He explained that the idea of holding negotiations was proposed in one of the motions raised during a party retreat held last month.
According to Muhyiddin, the motion suggested that the Bersatu president meet with the top leadership to discuss ways to prevent clashes within the party.
Meanwhile, he also said that the unity government parties are in a state of disarray and disunity, with party members questioning their leaders for abandoning the parties’ struggles for personal interests.
These “disgruntled” members, according to Muhyiddin, have left their parties “in pursuit of new political platforms that are trustworthy,” such as Bersatu.
“And we must embrace them with open hearts due to the similarities in our struggles,” he added. – July 13, 2024