Muhyiddin has the numbers to be PM?

PETALING JAYA: Sources said that based on support from Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Parti Warisan Sabah, Muhyiddin has emerged as a strong contender for the prime minister post.

It is understood that aside from getting all the support from Bersatu's 26 lawmakers, Muhyiddin's candidacy is also being endorsed by 11 former PKR MPs.

The Star is waiting for a response from the two parties.

However, it is still unclear if Muafakat Nasional's Umno and PAS will back Muhyiddin.

However, another source within Bersatu said that Umno and PAS members are not going to be accepted en-bloc as party chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad disagreed with the idea during a meeting held on Friday (Feb 28) morning at Yayasan Al-Bukhary.

"That's what Dr Mahathir wanted. He said he will disagree with Umno and PAS en bloc. But, if they were slowly absorbed into Bersatu and several of them are excluded, he (Dr Mahathir) is okay with it.

During the meeting at Yayasan Al-Bukhary, it was concluded that certain PAS and Umno members would be absorbed into Bersatu upon a vetting process which the source did not elaborate on.

"They are just going to accept clean members. That is the plan, because they don't want to go against the people of Malaysia who voted for Pakatan,

"It's akin to betraying the votes of Malaysians, and we are not going to do that," said the source.

According to one source, a majority of Bersatu MPs are supporting the idea of pushing for Muhyiddin as a candidate for the prime minister's post.

"Some of the seniors are not so happy. But that's because they are already old and irrelevant."

It is also alleged that during the meeting, Bersatu MPs convinced Dr Mahathir that Muhyiddin has the adequate number of MPs to support him in being prime minister.

"They convinced Dr Mahathir about the numbers and about how they can play ball. So, that's why they issued a statement endorsing Muhyiddin as the prime minister," said the source.

However, the number of MPs supporting Muhyiddin as prime minister wasn't disclosed.

In a statement earlier Friday (Feb 28), 10 former PKR MPs who defected with Datuk Seri Azmin Ali officially joined Bersatu.

The political turmoil which erupted earlier this week saw the resignation of Dr Mahathir as prime minister and the collapse of the Pakatan government. - Star