PAKATAN Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) have agreed to form a coalition government in Perak, a possible indication that a similar arrangement at the national level can be expected soon.
According to news reports and PH sources, PH and BN – infamous political arch-rivals – have joined hands to resolve the hung state assembly in Perak, which held concurrent state polls with the federal polls on Saturday (Nov 19).
During the 15th General Elections (GE15), Perikatan Nasional (PN) won 26 seats in the 59-seat Perak state assembly, PH 24 and BN nine.
A minimum of 30 seats in the state assembly are needed to form a simple majority, making BN the kingmaker in Perak.
It is speculated that caretaker menteri besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad is currently having an audience with Perak ruler Sultan Nazrin Shah at Istana Kinta, where the former is expected to inform the latter that he has the numbers to form a new state government.
Perak DAP leader Howard Lee arrived at the state palace just after noon, news reports said.
While nothing is impossible in politics and PH and BN did work together in 2020 to oust the then menteri besar, it will still come as a shock to many that the two coalitions were able to let bygones be bygones and come together to achieve a common purpose.
And if PH and BN were able to do this in Perak, what’s stopping them from doing the same in Parliament, which is currently hung as no single party won a simple majority – or 112 seats – during GE15?
The clearest indication of a BN-PH federal alignment, perhaps, is BN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s denial last night (Nov 20) of Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS)’s announcement that GPS, BN, Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) have formed a bloc to form a national coalition government.
It is also noteworthy that PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim maintains he still has the numbers to form a majority government (despite not getting GRS or PN’s support), and only BN has wrested enough seats to make a difference.
Without BN, the GPS-PN-GRS bloc only has 101 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, while a BN-PH bloc will see the support of 112 soon-to-be-sworn-in-MPs, the exact number for a simple majority.
All eyes will be on the National Palace this afternoon ahead of the 2pm deadline for political parties and pacts to provide an update about any post-GE15 pacts and their prime minister candidates.
Meanwhile, Malaysiakini quoted Perak palace spokesman Datuk Seri Mohd Annuar Zaini as saying that Saarani will be sworn in as menteri besar this evening after PH agreed to back him as menteri besar (despite having more seats than BN). – Nov 21, 2022
Main photo credit: The Star
