Why September? Let’s vote now - opposition MPs tell PM

 

Several opposition MPs have urged Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to test his majority in the Dewan Rakyat with a confidence vote immediately.

This is instead of waiting a month till the scheduled September sitting.

DAP’s Bakri lawmaker Yeo Bee Yin proposed the vote be held tomorrow.

Warisan’s Kota Belud MP Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis agreed and tweeted that she is still in the Klang Valley and would be able to attend a Dewan Rakyat sitting if it is held tomorrow.

Batu MP P Prabakaran of PKR similarly questioned why the prime minister could not prove he had a majority today.

‘Delay tactic’

Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii lambasted Muhyiddin’s plan as a “delay tactic” which will prolong the ongoing political crisis.

“He could have called for a special sitting to test it even now,” he tweeted.

The DAP lawmaker also expressed concern that the delay will see more defections.

“Why am I so upset with the delay, basically not only is the PM leaving the country in longer limbo which is bad for economic [sic] and even people’s confidence.

“But more importantly, he is further enabling the ‘frog culture’ that is the source of our problems today,” he said.

Meanwhile, PKR Subang lawmaker Wong Chen challenged Muhyiddin to prove his claim of possessing majority support by listing down which MPs were on his side.

“Despite some Umno MPs having withdrawn support for him, the prime minister claims that he has still has a majority, which means he has at least 111 MPs supporting him.

“Please publish the names of at least 111 MPs now,” he said.

Najib: PM 'lying'

Umno's Pekan MP Najib Abdul Razak disputed Muhyiddin's statement and similarly questioned why he only planned to prove his majority next month.

Pekan MP Najib Abdul Razak

"He (Muhyiddin) said he believed he still has majority support. But he promised the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to table a confidence vote during the September Parliament sitting. Why not now seeing that we have just entered August?

"Is it because Covid-19 is still attacking Parliament? But I saw those who were exposed to Covid-19 in Parliament were free to move around for meetings every night at home," he said in a Facebook post. 

The former prime minister, who has been convicted for one of his 1MDB-related trials, also disputed Muhyiddin's claim that his critics were upset because he refused to interfere in their criminal court cases. 

Najib accused him of "lying".

"Lastly, he blamed and lied that those who withdrew their support from him are those who want their cases dismissed when the best way to have them (cases) dismissed is by sucking up to him, not fighting against him," he said.

Najib was one of the 10 MPs who flanked Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as the latter announced that "enough" party lawmakers had withdrawn their support from the PM to cost him his Dewan Rakyat majority.  - Mkini