Mahathir and Anwar reportedly have agreed to a tag-team combo that will see the former returns as the prime minister for the third time while Anwar is to become his deputy. Like it or not, one of them has to make way or see traitors and crooks – Muhyiddin, Azmin, Najib, Zahid – laugh all their way to the bank. That report by “Free Malaysia Today”, however, cannot be confirmed.
Time is a rare commodity which neither Mahathir nor Anwar has. If both leaders fail to work together to combat their common enemies, not only they might risk going to jail together, the voters who had voted for them will despise the two individuals for putting their ego above the nation’s interest. Their hardcore supporters might even boycott them in the next 15th General Election.
Unlike Mahathir, who foolishly prosecuted only certain UMNO big crooks for corruption and money laundering (and forgave smaller crooks so that they could join Bersatu (PPBM) to enlarge his party), the vengeful former PM Najib appears to have started twisting the authorities’ arm to reopen cases against all Pakatan Harapan leaders – especially Mahathir and Anwar.
If Anwar thinks he is safe because he was not involved in the RM30 billion losses suffered by Bank Negara (Central Bank) in foreign exchange speculation during Mahathir’s era, then he’s stupider than he looks. How hard it is for Najib to cook up something and send him to jail again? After all, didn’t Najib send him to jail for sodomising Saiful Bukhari, despite the fabrication of the charges?
Last year, 26-year-old Muhammed Yusoff Rawther (a former researcher of Anwar’s party, PKR) has accused Mr. Anwar of attempting to force him into sex. The case is still fresh. To end Anwar’s political career, the tainted police force, judicial system and Attorney General’s Chambers can easily be instructed to fabricate sexual assault charges and put Anwar behind bars – again.
As both Mahathir and Anwar were wasting time squabbling, the backdoor government of Muhyiddin has released Sabah’s biggest crook – Musa Aman. Do not underestimate the temptation of RM50 million “cash” for each defector in Sabah, a land where its politicians will shamelessly hop like a frog. In truth, the Sabah government under Chief Minister Shafee Apdal is vulnerable.
When the domino effect starts, even Shafee himself may switch sides and join the devils. It would be game over if Sabah’s Warisan party hops over to the backdoor Perikatan Nasional government, bringing 9 MPs along. That would strengthen Muhyiddin’s current razor-thin majority in the 222-seat Parliament, boosting it from 113 to 122 seats, allowing the backdoor prime minister to rule until 2023.
When Sabah collapsed, it will be too late for Mahathir and Anwar to sing Kumbaya together. Even Azmin Ali, the traitor who was caught with his pants down engaging gay sex at Four Points Sheraton Hotel in Sandakan, Sabah, has been quietly setting up a new party – Parti Keadilan Negara – to house his 10 MPs, some are non-Malay, in preparation for a snap election.
Azmin, upon realising the mistake that his band of non-Malay MPs who had defected from Anwar’s PKR party cannot be accepted into Malay-only Bersatu, quickly set up the new political party. He also realised that there’s no place for him in UMNO. Azmin deliberately named his new party to closely resemble that of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) to confuse PKR supporters.
Disguised as an NGO (non-governmental organization) to serve people, Azmin uses taxpayers’ money to sponsor various types of NGOs throughout the nation to temporarily park his loyalists and to build grassroots – ready to migrate them to the new political party when the right time arrives. The plan was to replicate PKR, and to recruit members from Anwar’s party.
His new party may get slaughtered anyway in the next general election due to his disgusting betrayal. But at least he speaks less and works more. In fact, Azmin and his minions are plotting to bring down the state of Selangor, the richest state in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, while the complacent Pakatan Harapan thought their grip on the state is unbreakable.
True, Anwar-led Pakatan Harapan has the biggest number – 91 MPs. Unfortunately to the PM-in-waiting, Sabah and Sarawak – the two Borneo kingmakers – do not listen to him. Only Mahathir could charm Sabah, and probably Sarawak. It’s too bad for Anwar that his rival Mahathir, despite being left with only 5 MPs, could still influence Sabah’s 9 MPs and Sarawak’s 18 MPs.
Anwar should ask himself why he could not swing Sabah, let alone Sarawak, to his side. If he could influence both states, he can tell Mahathir and his five leftover MPs from Bersatu to fly kite. If Anwar can somehow convince Sabah and Sarawak to join his force of 91 MPs, he will command 118 MPs and can become the new prime minister. The key is Sabah and Sarawak.
Mahathir has in his pocket 9 MPs from Sabah. But even the 94-year-old man finds the Sarawak-based GPS a tough nut to crack. Without Sarawak, the Agong (King) will have an excuse to dissolve the Parliament as the Pakatan Harapan Plus is as unstable as Perikatan Nasional, hence paving for a general election – something that both Mahathir and Anwar do not want to happen.
Sure, Mahathir cannot be trusted. In fact, he is so untrustworthy that he should not be allowed to own fish as pets. But now is the time for Anwar to place his bet, regardless how risky the gamble is. The worst outcome is that Mahathir suddenly resigns – again. If this happens, Anwar still gets to become deputy PM for 6 months. At least, people would not blame Anwar for being selfish.
The slightly better one would be Mahathir’s reluctance to hand over after 6 months as promised, cooking up excuses and insisting to continue until 2023. The old fox might even challenge Anwar to prove that he commands the majority in Parliament. Anwar can pull out and let the government collapse, or continues as deputy PM for the remaining 2 years until the next election.
The best outcome of Mahathir-Anwar combo is a smooth transition after 6 months. Anwar would then have the remaining 2 years to govern and prove that he’s worth his salt, and that Mahathir has been wrong in the past with regards to his choice of successors. Anwar can show that his 2 years of administration are better than Mahathir’s second stint of 22 months.
Therefore, the consolation prize is that Pakatan Harapan Plus will have the remaining 2 years to govern (or to screw-up) and to prove the critics wrong. Anwar’s gamble will either see him as deputy PM for 6 months at worst or PM for 2 years at best. However, the tricky part is the formula to ensure Sabah and Sarawak continue to support Anwar in the event Mahathir keeps his promise and leaves in 6 months.
Of course, Mahathir can always send Anwar to jail using Yusoff Rawther’s allegation of sexual assault as an excuse. But so can Najib if he is allowed to make a comeback. It’s worth noting that Mahathir is no longer as popular as before the 14th General Election, with diminishing support from his own Malay community. His reputation has taken a serious hit.
Provided Anwar can still keep his remaining 38 PKR MPs intact and his allies DAP and Amanah loyal to him, he has a weapon to trigger the collapse of Mahathir’s government anytime if the old fox tries to be funny. More importantly, there’s only about 2 years left before the next general election must be called so whatever risks or gains are halved.
Perhaps Anwar should sign legally-binding agreements – in black and white – with not only Mahathir, but also allies DAP and Amanah that Mahathir will honour his commitment to quit after 6 months. It would certainly be helpful to publish the agreements for the public’s consumption. That should be able to test the sincerity of everyone.
In the same breath, a brainstorming session is necessary to find out exactly what Mahathir plans to do within the 6 months. Put that in black and white and signed by everyone. If Mahathir’s priority is not aligned with Pakatan Harapan’s reform and good governance agenda, kick the old man out. Do not insult the voters’ intelligence. Betray the voters at your own peril. - financetwitter
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