IN the grand theatre of Malaysian politics, irony has always been the most enduring theme. Over the weekend, Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin stood before his party’s eighth annual general assembly, pleading not to be toppled through statutory declarations (SDs).
Yes, the very same Muhyiddin who rose to the premiership in 2020 on the back of SDs and betrayal now wants immunity from the very weapon he once wielded.
This is the man who – in the aftermath of the Sheraton Move – cobbled together enough signatures and political defections to stab Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the back.
He didn’t win through the ballot box; he ascended through backroom deals, with SDs forming the lifeblood of his so-called mandate.
Back then, he had no qualms about turning an instrument of manipulation into his personal escalator to Seri Perdana. Four years later, as the escalator in the party he leads is reversing, the PM8 who is now a PM11 aspirant is crying foul.
Day-dreaming
He even has the cheek to tell his own party members to “respect the constitution” and not undermine him with SDs. Respect?
From Bersatu leaders who watched him orchestrate the Sheraton Move betrayal? From colleagues who know full well that their president normalised the very tactic he now condemns?
If hypocrisy were currency, Muhyiddin would be the richest man in Malaysian politics!
Even leaders from PAS – his Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition partner – who are more fixated with richness in the afterlife, were gobsmacked.
Its Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor – never one to mince words – essentially told Bersatu not to get ahead of itself while reminding everyone that naming a Prime Minister (PM) candidate or defending one is a coalition decision, not Bersatu’s private fantasy.
Then came PAS deputy president Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man who went a step further by telling everyone that such debates were premature given the real focus should be on fixing the rakyat’s woes as opposed to engaging in palace-in-waiting theatrics.
The subtext? “Calm down, Muhyiddin. Nobody’s rushing to crown you.”
Losing ground internally
Other PAS leaders were no warmer. The party has long flirted with the idea that one of its own – say, vice-president Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar or even president Tan Sri Hadi Awang – could lead PN into the next election.
That PAS Youth chief Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden floated these names just weeks ago shows how little appetite exists for Muhyiddin’s perpetual self-nomination.
Put together, it paints a picture of a leader who is not only losing the room in his own party but is also failing to ignite confidence among supposed allies.
Muhyiddin’s triumphant claim that he remains PN’s PM candidate looks less like a coronation but more of a desperate attempt to keep the crown glued to his head.
Let’s not forget: Muhyiddin was the first PM who came to power using SDs. He legitimised backroom plotting as a pathway to Putrajaya.
Now that the same playbook is being turned against him, he demands fairness and constitutionalism. This is akin to jailed ex-PM Datuk Seri Najib Razak lecturing others about good governance.
Muhyiddin may still cling on for now but every SD whispered in the corridors of Bersatu – 120 of the party’s divisions want his deputy Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin to succeed him – is a reminder that his own past deeds are catching up with him.
Karma, it seems, has an impeccable sense of timing. – Sept 11, 2025
