KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 29 — Perikatan Nasional (PN) deputy chairman Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said he was not invited to a so-called “pre-council” meeting hosted by former chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin tonight.
“No invitation, how can I attend?” Hamzah said briefly and in jest when asked by reporters about the pre-council meeting, suggesting growing internal friction within the coalition.
Muhyiddin had reportedly invited the presidents of the other three component parties — PAS, Gerakan, and MIPP — to his residence for the pre-council discussion ahead of an abortive extraordinary meeting of the coalition.
PN deputy secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan earlier confirmed the cancellation of the extraordinary meeting, describing the move as an effort to control a “storm in a coffee cup.”
He also questioned the grounds for Muhyiddin’s pre-council meeting, noting that while a Presidents Council is mentioned in the coalition’s constitution, it has never been formally established.
The extraordinary meeting was originally scheduled to discuss three key items: appointing a meeting chairman from among the deputy chairmen, approving Muhyiddin’s resignation, and appointing a new coalition chairman.