Muhyiddin and the puppet strings Umno is preparing for him

 

"Deny it to a king? Then, happy low, lie down! Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown."

- William Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2

Well yes, the political situation is fluid, but one solid outcome of this sordid political mess is that current Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's regime is over. At best, he will remain a figurehead, held ransom by various power groups squabbling for more feed time at the trough.

Anwar Ibrahim, meanwhile, has to accept the fact that political operatives far more adroit at Malay politics played him out. Still, he can take some consolation in the fact that Dr Mahathir Mohamad fared no better. Even now the old maverick continues his vendetta against the PKR president by claiming that any alliance Anwar comes up with Umno spells the doom of a party that he should have no loyalties to.

The old maverick could go on bended knees back to Umno to save whatever interest he has, but who knows if the very public mea culpa he has to do will be something he could live with.

Indeed, when former prime minister and convicted criminal Najib Abdul Razak asks you to repent in order to be forgiven, you realise how far down the rabbit hole we have fallen down. Even if the rumours are true that the old maverick is teaming up with Tengku Razaliegh Hamzah, the idea that fractional politics in Umno – many in Umno despise Mahathir – will allow for any sort of stable government is ludicrous.

The prime minister made a good play when he asked for an official letter stating down the demands of Umno. This is because the letter could be used for propaganda purposes to demonstrate how Umno are power crazy bandits making demands and going against the institutions of power through "undemocratic" means.

Of course, even if there were a "list of asks", please keep in mind that this being Malaysia and the political party involved being Umno, the authenticity of the letter would probably become a public question, depending on how the negotiations play out. Most Umno folks did not take the bait, with Najib's former special assistant and Selangor BN information chief Isham Jalil articulating the voices of desperate kleptocrats succinctly:

"If Bersatu is serious about cooperating with Umno and as the prime minister who is in power and needs the support of political parties to remain in power, the Bersatu president can present a fair offer to Umno or other political parties to be considered."

This way, whatever concessions Bersatu has to make to Umno are unofficial in the sense that nothing was asked, but everything is freely given, all in the name of "fairness".

Umno supreme council member and Pasir Salak MP Tajuddin Abdul Rahman (above) was a tad more obvious in demanding the DPM post. This effectively nullifies the PM and plum positions in ministries to facilitate the demands of the rakyat, but more importantly, to neutralise institutional threats to certain Umno personalities.

In Bridget Welsh's excellent piece on the various tribes of Umno, she accurately defines the agitations of the smaller die-hard tribe and their disdain for not only the direction of the party but also Umno's alliance with PAS.

Many of my contacts within Umno come from this group. They are what I like to refer to as frontliners in Umno who shepherd the herd in a direction the kleptocrats want them to go. I believe that this faction, although small, is agitating the most when it comes to an alliance with Bersatu and the possible return of a kleptocracy if the elites in the party get their way.

Another point worth considering is that they really despise the old maverick, who they believe betrayed the party and its struggle. It was these folks who, after Harapan came into power, were the most shaken by the shifting political ground beneath their feet because even though the elites were poisoning the well, the masses would still drink from it.

And this is really an important point. When someone like Najib, for instance, says the grassroots are not happy, this is true. But some grassroots are also not happy with the idea of the kleptocrats returning to power and putting the whole system in jeopardy. This, of course, has always led to internal sabotage and power grabs at inopportune moments.

Amanah communications director Khalid Samad (above) is correct to wonder out aloud if Anwar was played by Umno. Also important, is that certain Umno political operatives, maybe a small percentage and grassroots, also bought into the idea that Umno needed to pivot away from PN and weather it down until the next election. Hence a unity government of some sort would give them the breathing room to realign Umno so it would be in fighting shape for the next general election.

Young Umno members tell me that they are sick and tired of being dragged down by the problems of their elders and look to the younger generation of Umno leaders to mould the party. What they cannot understand is that when these old geezers were in their prime, they were taking power away from the older generation. So, why aren't these young leaders doing the same now?

However, even with all the internal bickering going on in Umno, the commonality is that everyone sees the Muhyiddin regime as weak. Everyone wants to benefit from holding the puppet strings of this "new terms" government.

The prime minister knows his days are numbered, and the outcome of this is that he will have to get comfortable with the puppet strings Umno is preparing for him.

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S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. A retired barrister-at-law, he hopes young people will assume the mantle of leadership – if there is to be any hope for this country. - Mkini

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.