In parliament and party, Najib experiences déjà vu
UPDATED
@ 07:15:37 AM 17-06-2013
By Jahabar Sadiq, Editor
June 17, 2013
Just a week before the 13th Parliament of Malaysia meets for
the first time, Barisan Nasional members of the house are in talks that
could decide whether the Prime Minister gets to enjoy his personal
mandate till the next general election.
While there is no immediate threat to the Barisan chairman's term in
office,
pockets of disgruntled coalition lawmakers want a better deal or else
they might either switch their support to Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah or
seek a change of leader in the Umno polls at the year end.
Analysts say PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak is not in a position to argue
with these MPs. He won just 133 of the 222 federal seats, so if just 23
of the Barisan MPs cross to Pakatan Rakyat for a clutch of posts and
other privileges, this could see a new government in Malaysia.
But The Malaysian Insider understands that the implicit threat of
such a move is being used within Umno circles to make sure Najib will
toe the party line and cut back on his economic, government and
political reforms.
Pro-Umno bloggers from the Mahathir camp have already asked for key
advisers to quit their posts to take responsibility for their strategies
that failed to help Barisan win more seats in Election 2013. These
strategies included giving more cash and aid to non-Malay schools and
organisations, and relaxing business restrictions.
Together with Malay rights and business entities, they believe that
Najib must now provide more for Malays and ignore the other races - a
view that is alarming to Najib's allies and also friendly foreign
governments who have encouraged the Prime Minister to continue his
reforms.
But Najib has reiterated he will continue such policies under his
transformation programmes so as to bolster the local economy and drive
Malaysia to a high-income nation by 2020.
He has also named 20 East Malaysian MPs as ministers and deputy
ministers but more want other positions too, apart from Umno lawmakers
who were not named to the Cabinet or other senior jobs.
"He has to appease the Borneo MPs and also the Umno MPs or he faces a
rebellion on his hands," a senior Barisan politician told The Malaysian
Insider.
Najib is not the first Umno president to face such a threat.
His predecessor faced a similar threat after Election 2008 from
within his party and also Pakatan, which had boasted it would capture
Putrajaya by September 16 that year by poaching Barisan MPs.
The administration of Tun Abdullah Badawi took the threat seriously
enough to send 49 MPs away on an agriculture technology study tour of
Taiwan, more than a week before that date – Malaysia Day.
Pakatan lynchpin PKR sent several leaders to Taiwan to speak to the Barisan MPs but the threat never materialised.
But that was enough to lead to Abdullah stepping down as Prime
Minister and Umno president seven months later, in April 2009, after
pressure from those MPs and his own party.
Interestingly, some of the MPs who went on that Taiwanese tour are
now said to be part of a group that has been discussing with Tengku
Razaleigh about crossing over to Pakatan.
The Kelantan prince, now the only MP from Najib's father Tun Abdul
Razak Hussein's era, has had ambitions to be Prime Minister since 1987
when he challenged Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for the Umno presidency.
"Those in talks with Ku Li can move as early as next week to make
their point," said a Barisan source, calling the former Umno
vice-president by his moniker.
But there are doubts that Tengku Razaleigh can succeed in getting
enough Barisan MPs to join Pakatan in a rare vote of no confidence
against Najib or cross over for a unity government.
"Like Pak Lah, Najib can beat back such a challenge. But like Pak
Lah, will that be enough to quell Umno from acting against him?" the
Barisan source said, calling Abdullah by his popular name.
"Now, that's the million-ringgit question, again," he added.
But the source said he expected Najib to make some moves to counter
the twin threats against his job in the coming week before parliament
opens.
"It should be an exciting week," he said.