By Julian Tan
WHICHEVER way one looks at it, the views by Istana Negara and the Malay rulers that Parliament should convene soon and that the current Emergency should end as scheduled on Aug 1, was a slap to Prime Minister Tan Sri Mahiaddin Yassin.
The conclusion from yesterday’s extraordinary Conference of Rulers was the second royal rebuke in eight months for the PM. The first was in October last year when the King rejected Mahiaddin’s request to declare an Emergency, although the former eventually agreed to it in January this year.
Since seizing power in February 2020, Mahiaddin’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) is hanging on to power by a thread. The withdrawal of support from a handful of Umno bigwig lawmakers and the death of several Mahiaddin-loyalist MPs suggest that the PN Government had all but lost control in the Federal legislature.
But thanks to the Emergency which has seen legislatures like the Dewan Rakyat suspended, Mahiaddin is spared the ignominy of having his support among MPs tested in the lower house. In fact, the Emergency granted Mahiaddin almost unfettered powers, which he wielded craftily, including triggering the defections of several MPs in favour of PN.
But in one fell swoop, the royal households have yesterday thrown into disarray Mahiaddin’s plans to use the Emergency to stay in power. The statement from the Keeper of the Rulers’ Seal, Tan Sri Syed Danial Syed Ahmad was crystal clear: no more Emergency come Aug 1. This would pave the way for the Dewan Rakyat to meet soon, which was also a view held by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.
While some Mahiaddin loyalists have indicated that the King acts under the advice of the Cabinet and the Special Independent Committee on the Emergency, the fact is that the royal institutions wield immense influence. Mahiaddin has no choice but to be seen as acceding to the royal request. Politically weak, the Prime Minister cannot afford to wage a battle with the royalty and throw the country into a constitutional crisis.
With the Dewan Rakyat all but set to reopen, Malaysian politics is set to become more fluid than it already is. As it is, PN’s grip on power is already suspect. This is made worse by the efforts by both sides of the political divide to woo MPs to their side to boost the respective bloc’s numerical strength.
And if a motion of no-confidence is tabled in the Dewan Rakyat and carried through, then Mahiaddin would have to resign. But he has no clear successor if this happens. The opposition Pakatan Harapan have been bickering over its candidate for Prime Minister-designate since Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad quit the Government in January 2020.
Within PN, neither Umno nor Bersatu would be willing to yield to each other for the coveted PM’s post. This impasse could only mean one thing: a snap general election.
If polls are held after a significant number of the population have been given COVID-19 vaccination, then there should not be any problem. Otherwise, we may see a repeat of the kind of infection that swept through the country following the Sabah election last year.
In any case, there’s no telling which way the election results will swing, with Bersatu, Umno, PAS and Parti Keadilan Rakyat all vying for the same Malay vote bank. We may just end up with a hung Parliament, faring no better than without an election.
But given the political uncertainties that have enveloped this nation since early 2020 and our deplorable track record in combating COVID-19, yesterday’s royal decree might just be the drastic action needed to put the country on track to recovery. – June 17, 2021
Julian Tan is a FocusM editorial contributor.
The views expressed here are of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
