PAS, UMNO, Bersatu, Amanah And 10 PKR MPs Said To Be Forming A New Coalition Govt
The new coalition reportedly has the support of over 130 Members of Parliament (MPs).
By Sadho Ram — 23 Feb 2020, 10:46 PM
The formation of a new coalition government is no longer mere speculation with a collective agreement involving a number of parties said to be supporting Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad
According to multiple reports including New Straits Times and The Star, Tun Dr Mahathir has the support of over 130 Members of Parliament (MPs) from parties previously in the opposition.
The new coalition is said to be comprising of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), UMNO, 10 MPs from PKR splinter faction aligned to Azmin Ali, PAS, Amanah, Warisan, and GPS.
GPS and Warisan with their 27 seats would help bring the new coalition to a total of 119 MPs — which is seven seats more than the number of seats needed to form the government, Malaysiakini reported.
The Star reported that six leaders including Muhyiddin Yassin, Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, and Abdul Hadi Awang have already met with Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at Istana Negara to brief the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the latest political development in the country.
The same has been confirmed by New Straits Times, which cited a UMNO source.
"I was made to understand that the Yang di-Pertuan Agong advised them to refer to the previous Perak case ... that is what I was informed," the source was quoted as saying, referring to the 2009 incident when three Pakatan Rakyat state assemblymen defected and caused the collapse of the Perak state government.
"At the moment, we already have 139 Parliamentary seats and the figure is sufficient for us to form the government," New Straits Times quoted the anonymous UMNO source as saying.
According to a party insider, the formation of a new government — "whatever it is, this is historical and symbolises unity in the country"
The party insider, who was not named by New Straits Times, said that the presence of many leaders at Hotel Sheraton was to show that the formation of a new government wasn't a mere rumour.
However, UMNO secretary-general Annuar Musa said that Pakatan Harapan is over.
Meanwhile, PKR president Anwar Ibrahim has confirmed the speculations as "a betrayal".
"We are waiting for more information, but there are attempts by our former allies Bersatu and several traitors from PKR to topple the Pakatan Harapan government. They have met with the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong earlier this evening, but there hasn't been any announcement," he said at his residence.
Azmin Ali, Abdul Hadi Awang, Dr Mahathir, and Annuar Musa at the Malay Dignity Congress in October last year.
Image via 1Media