Najib warns of national snap polls amid rumblings in Johor

As Bersatu’s Kempas assemblyperson Osman Sapian faces the possibility of being expelled from his party, former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak warned that political manoeuvres in Johor could lead to a snap election at the national level.

He referred to Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar’s threat on June 3 to dissolve the state assembly in the event of another power struggle.

In a Facebook post today, Najib said that if the Johor state assembly is dissolved, then parliament might as well be dissolved too so that a federal election could be held together with the Johor state election.

“There is opportunity to hold it in conjunction with the Sabah state election too. Other states will follow suit.

“This means that if Pakatan Harapan Plus insists of grabbing power in Johor, the result is the possibility of a general election all over the country,” he said, while predicting a crushing defeat for Pakatan Harapan and its allies.

Harapan Plus is an informal name referring to Harapan, Warisan, and Bersatu dissidents led by Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Mahathir has since launched his own party Pejuang after being expelled from Bersatu.

“If Harapan Plus wants to go against the sultan’s warning and pining for a general election to take place immediately, please continue to fight for power in Johor.

“We in BN are itching for a fight. Your move, Harapan Plus,” he said.

Osman is expected to face disciplinary action after he appeared on the campaign trail alongside the Pejuang-backed candidate Amir Khusyairi Mohamad Tanusi at the recently concluded Slim by-election.

This included the possibility of having his Bersatu membership terminated, in which case, Osman had indicated he would become an independent member of the Johor state assembly.

However, this could leave the Perikatan Nasional-led state government in Johor in a precarious position, as it currently has 29 seats in the assembly against the opposition’s 27 seats.

A single crossover from PN would result in a hung assembly. Currently, the speaker is Suhaizan Kayat, who is not an elected lawmaker.

Previously, following the Sheraton Move in February, Sultan Ibrahim had warned that he would dissolve the state assembly if there was another power struggle.

Some had questioned whether the sultan has the power to unilaterally dissolve the assembly.

Nevertheless, the threat had been enough to derail Harapan’s plans to mount a countercoup against PN, and Johor Harapan said it would uphold the royal decree. - Mkini