The return of Anwar-Mahathir tandem or Dr M's new ploy?
Is there a return of the Anwar Ibrahim-Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad tandem?
It appears to be the case though there are still frictions between both leaders.
Dr Mahathir is also saying his party, the Bersatu is still in the Pakatan Harapan opposition coalition.
At this moment, Dr M is still the Chairman of Bersatu and is doing all he can to keep Bersatu in PH.
On the other hand, he is also waiting for Bersatu to expel him.
The case of Bersatu is a strange one. It has members who sat in the government and others who sat in the opposition.
On May 18, Malaysia had a one-day Parliamentary session in which the MPs were asked to listen to a speech by the King of Malaysia.
MAHATHIR’S NEW PLOY
Dr Mahathir came back with a bang at a press conference after the one-day Parliament seating.
He made the usual sarcastic comments, with jibes against the government of PM Muhyiddin Yasin.
He also got the media to laugh with his comments on the case of ex-PM Najib Razak’s stepson, Riza Aziz.
However, Anwar Ibrahim was not present during the presser. He decided to go for an interview with the New York Times, his party says.
Malaysiakini, however, says Anwar had informed his party he did not want to be ‘used’.
This indicates that the man who was denied the post of Prime Minister when Dr M resigned on Feb 27 is not playing into the latter’s hand any more.
Which is a good sign for the PH because kowtowing to Dr M lead to the coalition losing the government.
Now that the PH is a bigger opposition, the biggest opposition block ever in Malaysia’s history, Anwar wants to keep control.
It is interesting to see in the coming days how Dr M will react to Anwar putting his foot down.
We believe Dr Mahathir’s presence at the PH presser is a new ploy. An attempt to regain the leadership of PH.
PH FAULT
It will be PH’s fault if the coalition goes back to follow what Dr Mahathir says. The latter ignored all the warning signs when he was PM.
He rejected the notion that his leadership was ‘passé’ or outdated and that he could not bring reforms in the country.
He also failed to hand over to Anwar after many massive defeats in by-elections. Had he realised his limitations, it could have saved the PH.
On Feb 27, he did the unthinkable. Unable to get his party to toe to his line, he resigned. This sent the PH government crashing.
Following the inevitable, where he lost his PM seat for good, he accused Anwar of always trying to become PM.
If the PH leadership thinks Dr Mahathir is going to get them the government back, they must be dreaming.
The MPs supporting PM Muhyiddin Yassin are not bluffing. They sat in the government’s seats on Monday, May 18 to show their support to the government.
ANWAR’S PLANS
What are Anwar Ibrahim’s plans after the events of today? We think Anwar should continue to press Dr Mahathir to play second fiddle in PH.
He should do everything to keep Dr Mahathir in the coalition but make it clear to the elderly statesman that his role as PM is over.
His failure to drive the country to new heights has caused him to lose the confidence of a majority of MP’s in Parliament. It has also caused a fall in support for the PH.
Anwar should get Mahathir to take responsibility for his misgivings in the past two years, but to remain in PH as a ‘tokoh’.
Only this will help the PH regain the strength and trust of the public.