The Malaysian Insight

UMNO is distancing itself from Muhyiddin Yassin and Perikatan Nasional (PN) to avoid the stain of being part of a “failed government”, a party leader and analysts said.

Umno Supreme Council member Mohd Razlan Muhammad Rafii said the PN government’s bad performance is due to Muhyiddin’s failure to lead and empower his cabinet.

He said Umno MPs who were ministers had limited powers to manage their respective portfolios.

“Senior ministers and Umno ministers in the cabinet do not have full power.

“Their powers are limited, while sole power to decide everything lies with the prime minister,” Razlan told The Malaysian Insight.

Razlan said an example of Muhyiddin’s failure was how he chaired the National Security Council.

“A lot of the decisions he (Muhyiddin) made have resulted in failure in containing the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The decisions made by the prime minister shows that the government has failed,” he said.

After forming the PN government with Muhyiddin’s Bersatu and other parties in February last year, Umno began to complain a few months down the road that it was being sidelined and its views ignored in the government.

Sixteen of the party’s 38 MPs were in the cabinet until last week when two ministers – Parit Sulong MP Noraini Ahmad and Lenggong MP Shamsul Anuar Nasarah – resigned from their portfolios as higher education and energy and natural resources ministers, respectively.

Razlan agreed that each minister was also responsible for the government’s decisions but questioned why there were still ministers who have shown their dissatisfaction towards the administration, even doing so outside proper channels.

“Despite collective cabinet decisions, there are matters that are beyond the jurisdiction of ministers.

“There are things they couldn’t voice out, so it was revealed to the media,” Razlan said, referring to the alleged disagreement between then senior security minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and senior economy minister Mohamed Azmin Ali over factory closures in early June.

The cabinet at the time was said to have had different opinions between tightening movement controls to curb the spread of Covid-19, and allowing the economic sector to operate.

Razlan said as public unhappiness with Muhyiddin’s government grew, Umno decided to heed the people’s sentiment.

“Umno has decided to listen to the people that this government has failed.

“The people have urged all the ministers to leave the government. Then we can discuss how we can revive the country and people’s lives,” he said.

Universiti Malaya political science lecturer Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi agreed that Umno was distancing itself from the government because it did not want to be involved in the government’s failures.

“Umno does not want the people to see the party involved in the government because of its failure in dealing with the pandemic.

“This will cause Umno’s image to be tarnished with the government controlled by Muhyiddin.

“If Umno continues with PN, then Umno will get caught up in the failure of the government in handling the pandemic,” he said, noting that Muhyiddin is the president of Bersatu and also chairman of PN.

Ilham Center executive director Hisomuddin Bakar said that Muhyiddin had failed to “buy over” the Umno leadership after relying on using appointments to posts and government-linked companies to secure his government.

Several Umno leaders, including Razlan, last week resigned from their posts at GLCs foundations, trust funds and public universities.

“Umno is determined that they can’t be bought to salvage their relationship with the government.”

Razlan resigned as a board member of the Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT).

Their resignations, as well as that of ex-ministers Shamsul Anuar and Noraini, came after Umno announced on August 3 it was withdrawing support from Muhyiddin and the PN government. The party also said it had enough MPs pulling support to cause the government to collapse.
https://www.themalaysianinsight.com/s/331155

As of yesterday, 15 Umno MPs are no longer in support of Muhyiddin. These are the 14 whose letters to the Yang Di Pertuan Agong stating their withdrawal of support were revealed on the Umno website, and Noraini, who does not have a letter.

This leaves 23 Umno MPs among 100 MPs supporting Muhyiddin, and 120 against. – August 11, 2021.