BARISAN Nasional (BN) has betrayed its members and Malay voters by working with Pakatan Harapan to form the federal government after the 15th general election (GE15), said Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal.
According to the Machang MP, talks between the two coalitions had been going on since 2020.
“They call themselves the protectors of Malay interests, that their struggle is for the Malays and [the] Bumiputera. At their general assembly they said ‘No Anwar, No DAP’ and the Malays voted for them because of this,” he said in an interview with BBK Network.
“Honestly, [the cooperation between BN and PH] was unexpected by many but not by us. It was real. The talks have been ongoing since 2020.”
When questioned why Malay voters were now favouring Perikatan Nasional (PN) over other coalitions – statistics indicated that PN garnered 54% of the Malay vote during GE15 – Wan Fayhsal noted that it was thanks to PN’s desire for a “cleaner” government.
“The problem with corruption [is that it] is more persistent in BN as we have seen many court cases [against BN leaders],” he opined.
“As for PH, I think the Malays cannot accept ideologies that go against the very foundation of Malay political philosophy.”
Wan Fayhsal pointed to DAP’s Setapak Declaration 1967 which called for the opposition of segregating Malaysians into “Bumiputera” and “non-Bumiputera” as an example.
For context, the Setapak Declaration 1967 affirms DAP’s viewpoint that “in the process of nation-building, ethnic equality must be made the paramount principle and it is upon this principle that the separation of citizens into ‘Bumiputera’ and ‘non-Bumiputera’ is strongly opposed.
On policies relating to culture and education, the declaration stresses the spirit of the National Constitution must be respected; while firmly accepting Bahasa Malaysia as the national language, the right of using other languages must be protected.
“This is [something that] the Malays – especially rural Malays – cannot accept,” Wan Fayhsal claimed, further noting that such a move would “erode Malay rights”.
Meanwhile, Wan Fayhsal was also quick to dispel rumours of PN planning another Sheraton Move to wrest power from PH.
“There is nothing wrong for us, as the opposition, to say [we’re ready to take over the government],” he said, in reference to a remark by Opposition leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin in Parliament.
On Dec 19 Hamzah said the Opposition remains ready to take over as ruling government “when the time comes” and that “it can be any time; tomorrow, next week or next election”.
“Of course, it could be [in the] next five years. It depends on the configuration of the current government, and that is why you shouldn’t ask us, but ask [Prime Minister] Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim,” Wan Fayhsal aded.
“There’s the anti-hopping law in place, (so) you can’t change things. That’s good, right? It gives us some sort of stability, but, when it comes to politics, it’s an art of the impossible.
“Let me give you a scenario. If there is a new UMNO president and he decides to not work with the government, wouldn’t that cause the government to collapse? Yes. Is it constitutional? Yes. Is it legal? Yes.” – Jan 16, 2023
Main pic credit: Utusan Malaysia
