It looks like there has been yet another unexpected twist to the seemingly never-ending controversy surrounding the six Bersatu MPs who had earlier declared their support for PM Anwar’s unity government; this was after the Kelantan state assembly speaker had recently declared Azizi Abu Naim’s Nenggiri state seat as vacant! Azizi of course is also the Perikatan Nasional MP for Gua Musang parliamentary constituency.
Hailing the decision, Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin was quick to announce that it was proof that the amendment to the party’s constitution was valid and that it was in line with state enactments; he further claimed that the provision was also in accordance with the anti-hopping law under the Federal Constitution!
Muhyiddin then stated that Bersatu and its PN allies were now ready to face the by-election for the state seat once the Election Commission fixes the polling date.
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin’s outspoken Bersatu supreme council member Wan Saiful Wan Jan also echoed the jubilation and confidence expressed by the PN chairman.
However, he appeared to have sparked a new controversy after claiming that following the Kelantan state assembly Speaker’s decision, Dewan Rakyat speaker Johari Abdul “had no choice” now but to follow the precedent and declare the six parliamentary seats as vacant; after all, according to him, Bersatu had already terminated the memberships of all the six rebel MPs.
Wan Saiful then went on to assert that surely Johari would want to ensure uniformity in the implementation of rules in both the state assembly and parliament; he also issued a subtle “warning” that failure to do so may result in the country facing a fresh constitutional crisis!
But will the Tasek Gelugor MP’s latest statement come back to haunt him and land him in hot water? After all, only last March the same Dewan Rakyat Speaker had vowed to take stern action against him and two other PN MPs over allegations of coercion; this was over Wan Saiful’s allegation that the two MPs, Mohd Azizi Abu Naim and Dr Zulkafperi Hanapi had tried to “influence” him to support PM Anwar’s unity government.
Not only that, in an earlier controversy, the Star had also reported that Wan Saiful was fortunate to have been spared the possibility of a six-month suspension; this was after he had apologized for making baseless allegations of corruption against PM Anwar in Parliament; in fact, he also had to apologise to the King, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim over his reckless remarks.
Coming back to his latest controversial remarks, to many it might seem as if he was teaching the Dewan Rakyat Speaker how to do his job; moreover, by stressing that Johari had no choice but to follow the Kelantan state assembly Speaker’s decision, it may be construed that he was attempting to apply undue pressure on the former. But will the Dewan Rakyat Speaker take Wan Saiful’s latest salvo kindly?
In truth, regardless of what the Bersatu leader may claim, it would appear that the Kelantan state assembly Speaker’s decision may have raised several questions, one of them being that it may not have been in line with the Federal Constitution which stipulates that the expulsion from the party may not be tantamount to ceasing to be an MP.
As for the unfazed Azizi, the man in the centre of the storm, he has said that he was not at all surprised by the decision and that he had planned to take the Kelantan speaker’s decision to the court. So, clearly it's not quite the end of the saga yet; in fact, it could be another brand new episode in the long-running drama!
Furthermore, given the complexity and confusion over the interpretation of the anti-hopping law itself, did Muhyiddin and Wan Saiful actually celebrate their “victory” a little too soon?
While finally, did Wan Saiful shoot himself in the foot, yet again, by trying to “gaslight” the Dewan Rakyat Speaker to declare the six parliamentary seats vacant - so that it will trigger a fresh round of by-elections?
After all, isn't it a gamble Bersatu simply had to take, in order to reclaim the lost seats and reaffirm its role in PN - or risk being eclipsed by PAS?
Information Source: FMT, Malaysiakini, Malay Mail, The Star and Facebook Wan Saiful
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