Another 10 Perikatan Nasional MPs will declare their support for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, said Bukit Gantang MP Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal.
The Bersatu lawmaker did not specify when those MPs will hold a formal announcement but hinted it would be before the Dewan Rakyat sitting commences on Feb 26.
Syed Abu Hussin (above), who declared his support for Anwar in November, also did not identify who the 10 were but said this comes after Tanjong Karang MP Zulkafperi Hanapi declared his support on Wednesday (Jan 24).
He referred to this new wave of declarations as the “8+3” formula to indicate who the opposition MPs might be. This includes Zulkafperi who makes 11.
“For the Northern region - Kedah, Penang, and Perak - there are five people. From the East Coast - Kelantan, Terengganu, and Pahang - there are three, and another three from the central region (Selangor and Malacca),” he said.
Syed Abu Hussin was speaking at a press conference which was streamed on social media today.
Yesterday, Bersatu’s Zulkafperi joined a list of opposition MPs who declared support for Anwar to remain as prime minister.
However, he said he is still loyal to Bersatu.
Five Bersatu MPs last year declared support for Anwar to remain as PM. They were Syed Abu Hussin (Nov 28), Jeli MP Zahari Kechik (Nov 8), Gua Musang MP Mohd Azizi Mohd Naim (Nov 7), Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman (Oct 30), and Kuala Kangsar MP Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Oct 12).
The announcements by the Bersatu MPs come amid speculation of an attempted coup to topple the sitting government. Not including the Bersatu MPs, Anwar is backed by 153 out of 222 members of the Dewan Rakyat.
Call to switch support again
Syed Abu Hussin also called on five high-profile and experienced Bersatu MPs to follow in his footsteps and express support for the government.
The five were Hamzah Zainduin (Larut), Ronald Kiandee (Beluran), Mas Ermieyati Samsudin (Masjid Tanah), Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz (Tanah Merah), and Rosol Wahid (Hulu Terengganu).
He said it would not be difficult for them to switch their support as they have done so before.
He was referring to the parliamentarians who contested – and won – on the BN ticket but left to join Bersatu to be part of Pakatan Harapan at the time.
They also left Harapan and supported another party to form a new government after the Sheraton Move in 2020, he added.
“If they put serious thoughts into it, maybe they can help PMX (Anwar) better, with the experience that they have. We can discuss and offer better and more constructive suggestions,” he said.
‘PAS will ditch Bersatu’
Meanwhile, Syed Abu Hussin claimed the move to support Anwar could be an early preparation for Bersatu to face the 16th general election because he thinks PAS has a “history of changing allies”.
He said the Islamist party thinks it is strong and can make its own decisions as they have done previously.
“In every past election, PAS will form alliances with different parties.
“I see that in GE16, PAS will not take Bersatu as an ally in the election, therefore Bersatu needs to make early preparations,” he said.
PAS is currently the largest party in the Dewan Rakyat with 43 seats. - Mkini
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