ANTI-NAJIB FORCES GAIN GROUND: Support of 107 MPs in hand, 10 more sought for NO CONFIDENCE VOTE
Written by Malaysia Chronicle
UPDATED KUALA LUMPUR
- Prime Minister Najib Razak's announcement of delaying the Umno party
elections by 18 months has set in motion a frenzy of activity by his
rivals, who aim to topple him 'before the end of this year'.
The
anti-Najib faction in Umno drew first blood when Johor youth leader
Khairul Anwar Rahmat resigned from all posts, citing personal reasons.
"The
entire country knows apart from the charges (of conspiring with former
premier Mahathir Mohamad to embarrass Najib), Khairul also recently
supported the Johor Crown Prince who had urged leaders to put the
interests of the people first and not the ideology of the party," wrote
former minister Zainuddin Maidin in a blog posting that warned of
greater turmoil with more Johor leaders poised to resign their posts in
sympathy with Khairul.
Kalimullah 'eye-opener'
Datuk Khairul Anwar Rahmat
Khairul's move also drew a response from former NST group editor-in-chief Kalimullah Khairul Hassan - a well-known supporter of another former prime minister, Abdullah Badawi.
"A brave decision. Wish there were more like him in BN," Kalimullah posted on Twitter.
Although
Badawi's quiet style is in contrast with the feisty Mahathir's, he is
still an influential power-broker in Umno with son-in-law Khairy
Jamaluddin the national Umno Youth Chief.
While
Khairy has made sure to shout out his support for Najib, there are many
in Umno who cite the phrase 'still waters run deep' when describing his
loyalty to his boss.
Even
Home Minister Zahid Hamidi may not stand behind Najib if the furore
over the RM42 billion 1MDB financial scandal worsens, they add.
So
far within Najib's Cabinet, his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin and Sabah
minister Shafie Apdal have openly criticized 1MDB - Najib's brainchild
sovereign fund accused of 'losing' RM28 billion of public money.
Will Ku Li rise to the ocassion or FLOP AGAIN - 107 MPs in hand, another 10 to go
Ku Li and Dr M
Meanwhile,
within the Umno faction loyal to Kelantan prince Tengku Razaleigh,
confidence is rising that he can finally become PM after a near
three-decades wait.
Political insiders tel Malaysia Chronicle,
the anti-Najib camp now holds the support of 107 Members of Parliament
and are working hard to get another 10 - more than the 6 required, so as
to ensure a 'rock solid' ouster.
"The
pressure is now on Ku Li. He has been too soft and slow. There is
already agreement from the anti-Najib factions in Umno and support from
the Opposition for him to be caretaker PM once the no-confidence vote is
successfully made," the political source said.
"But
Ku Li need to do more - he is too low-profile and too cautious. Time is
of essence because with the Umno polls postponed by 18 months, Najib
will 'kill off' all his opponents by blocking them from contesting in
any seat. His detractors must act fast when the upper hand is so near
within reach. Or they will lose it all."
There are 222 seats in Malaysia's federal Parliament and only a simple majority is needed to oust Najib.
UMNO had just announced the postponement of its party election from late-2016 to mid-2018 on Friday.
Civil war in Umno to escalate - Sabah & Johor will be rocked
The Johor Crown Prince
According to DAP MP for Kluang Liew Ching Tong, the move means that:
'Firstly, Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Najib Razak will cling on to the position of Prime Minister as long as he can.
'UMNO
leaders will have to go along with the fact that Najib will be Prime
Minister well into the next general election or Najib would only be
removed in a very drastic and dramatic manner such as a no-confidence
vote in
Parliament with a significant number of UMNO MPs crossing the
floor.'
'Secondly,
after delaying the party polls, Najib will likely embark on a cabinet
reshuffle as those who would be dropped would not be able to challenge
him in the party election, and they would be dropped as candidates for
the general election anyway.
Their political careers will be ended
before they could fight back in the now postponed party polls.'
'Ministers
to be excluded from the next cabinet are likely to be Deputy Prime
Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and Sabahan Shafie Apdal.'
Najib will look for quick kill
PM Najib
'Thirdly,
elections could be much earlier than 2018. As long as Najib is sure of
victory in the general elections he would by now prefer an earlier
election to get rid of dissidents in UMNO and to get more loyalists to
contest in the general election.'
'It
is now clear to many that if Najib continues to lead UMNO into the next
general election, UMNO is at risk of losing power altogether as the
Najib brand is by now totally discredited in the various scandals. The
longer Najib leads UMNO, the more likely it is that he would drag UMNO
with him.'
'There
is a huge political vacuum in Malaysian politics that Malaysians of all
ethnic groups from all parts of the country are looking for new
leadership.'
'Further,
with UMNO clinging on to power, a split in UMNO is inevitable. The
split will be felt keenly in Johor and Sabah with the potential sackings
of Muhyiddin and Shafie from the Cabinet.'
'The
DAP must present itself as the party of choice for all in the current
state of flux and provide leadership for a nation desperate to move on.'
- Malaysia Chronicle
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