IF anyone thought the internet will forget, they are learning that it does not and anything you say will get back to you in a backlash. This is what ex-premier Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is learning the hard way after his remarks about Prime Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s newly unveiled Cabinet.
Netizens are reminding the now in Opposition chairman of Perikatan Nasional (PN) whose coalition with PAS won 73 parliamentary seats (as opposed to Pakatan Harapan’s 82) that he once led a kerajaan tebuk atap (backdoor government) and that he and his cabinet were “made of frogs”.
In all fairness, the crudity of their comments is understandable for they still vividly remember how the 22-month-old Pakatan Harapan (PH) government was toppled in March 2020 by the Muhyiddin-orchestrated Sheraton Move which eventually saw him ‘squeezing in’ as Malaysia’s eighth prime minister (albeit for a short spell of only 17 months).
Below is a thread initiated by Twitter user Nathaniel Tan @NatAsasi which is self-explanatory:
To a claim that Muhyiddin’s cabinet did not have “blatantly corrupt people” (note that Deputy Prime Minister [DPM] Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi is still innocent until proven guilty), the Twitter user said there are still various degrees of “blatantness” within the PN coalition.
Below are few more comments which are critical of the Bersatu president and Pagoh MP:
In his reaction to Anwar’s Cabinet line-up, Muhyiddin claimed that Anwar had “pawned” the principles of good governance as preached by him during his election campaign by appointing “kleptocrat” UMNO president Zahid into the cabinet.
He further described Anwar’s Cabinet as “the lamest in the Malaysian history”.
“This is the most disappointing Cabinet line-up in the country’s history when a person who has been told to enter his defence on 47 charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), corruption, and money laundering, is appointed DPM,” he penned in a recent Facebook post. “Anwar’s act is akin to selling the country’s dignity so that he can remain the PM.”
Muhyiddin further stated that the “kleptocratic Cabinet” which was formed by cheating the people’s mandate has no legitimacy to function as the country’s highest executive body.
His view drew flak from newly appointed Digital Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil who advised him “to stop the terrifying polemic attacks and trying to mislead the people”.
“It is important for us to remember that Muhyiddin himself has many issues that may need to be researched and investigated later, including the 1BestariNet issue and the issue of RM500 bil fund that was said to be spent during the pandemic period,” cautioned the Lemabah Pantai MP.
Earlier in his Facebook statement, Fahmi reminded Muhyiddin that the final list of Cabinet appointees was not at the sole discretion of the PM but was a collective decision made by Anwar and party leaders in his unity government.
“Maybe Muhyiddin forgot, but this is not a PH government where the PM is able to appoint whomever he wants,” justified Fahmi. “This is a unity government that is formed jointly, where important policies or decisions are made with consultation, including when appointing the cabinet of ministers.”
