IN the battle for Melaka, Barisan Nasional (BN) emerged victorious by handing both Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional a resounding defeat.
BN won two thirds majority in Melaka, which will enable the coalition to fulfil one of its electoral promises of amending its state constitution to allow five appointed lawmakers to sit in its legislative assembly to prevent party-hoppers.
Anyhow, it looks like Perikatan and Pakatan received a drubbing in a way no one had anticipated, perhaps even by BN.
The win will definitely embolden UMNO leadership to stick to its non-cooperation resolution with Perikatan in the 15th General Election.
It would also give a morale boost its members who were “crushed” after being seen subservient to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) under the Perikatan coalition.
And it looks like former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, despite being convicted of graft charges, still holds a massive sway among the public under his Bossku persona.
This will embolden him and his team mate, UMNO president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to exert more influence and chart the nationalist party’s future course, probably even powerful enough to sidestep Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob who serves as party vice president.
And did anyone notice Ismail Sabri’s absence during campaigning in Melaka?
In addition, BN’s triumph in Melaka may not bode well for Islamist party, PAS, which had abandoned UMNO under the Muafakat Nasional charter in favour of joining Perikatan.
PAS’ gamble to “ditch” UMNO for Bersatu may not have borne the desired result, which means UMNO may “punish” the party for abandoning it during trying times!
As for Perikatan, it must be gut-wrenching for its head honcho Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to see his nemesis Najib taking a victory lap!
It is believed that Bersatu and PAS were hoping for BN to lose in Melaka, in a move to get the coalition back into the Perikatan fold, with its tails between its legs.
However, BN’s resounding victory is definitely a slap on Perikatan’s face, as a PAS leader had “hoped” for BN to lose so that it would “come to its senses”.
Perhaps, it is now time for Muhyiddin and PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang to eat humble pies and realise BN is still a force to be reckoned with despite carrying a lot baggage.
Melaka cancels “frog culture”, principled or otherwise
Touching on Pakatan, honestly speaking, the defeat is definitely well-deserved and voters have made sure of it.
Before any Pakatan supporters start mounting criticism, do be reminded that by PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s own admission, it was the Opposition coalition which triggered the fall of the previous Melaka government with the help of the infamous Melaka quartet.
And that did not bode well with many as people still remember how the Sabah state election last year triggered the worst COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia.
Adding salt to injury, PKR and its allies Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) even allowed two of the “frogs” to contest under its banner, with Datuk Seri Idris Haron contesting in Asahan and Datuk Nor Azman Hassan contesting for the Pantai Kundor seat, despite protests from the DAP.
And lo and behold, both “frogs” got voted out, with Pakatan only winning five seats. Bear in mind that the coalition won 15 seats in the last general election and was running the state before Bersatu’s defection last year.
Perhaps, this is a good lesson for Anwar and other Pakatan leaders for having an appetite to condone and accept “political frogs’ in their wings. Thankfully, the progressive and effective Amanah leader Adly Zahari managed to retain the Bukit Katil seat.
But the same cannot be said for Anwar’s proxy, Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin who lost the Paya Rumput seat.
Overall, PKR, PAS and Gerakan failed to win even a single seat, while BN coalition partners MCA and MIC managed to win three seats combined.
In a nutshell, it is time for both Perikatan and Pakatan to reflect on what went wrong and restrategise for the upcoming general election.
It looks like Muhyiddin and Hadi may have to bend over backwards to accommodate UMNO if they ever wanted to be on the nationalist party’s good books, while Pakatan leaders may have to face backlash from their supporters before moving forward with a new agenda for the people.
And one of the agenda should be zero tolerance over “political frogs.” – Nov 20, 2021.
