Looks like UMNO, sounds like UMNO and smells like UMNO! But damn, it’s PKR!
The Peoples' Parliament
Constitutional amendments carried through at the recently concluded UMNO assembly were touted as intended to address the problem of money politics that had long plagued the party’s elections.
Whether those amendments will in fact achieve that stated objective remains to be seen.
And if such amendments prove to be effective, one wonders if PKR, too, is up to the task of doing whatever is necessary to rid itself of the cancerous money politics that has, in recent days, become the order of the day in Sabah.
No, not vote-buying but, so my source tells me, buying acquiescence and submission, at divisional head level, of the most recent decision made at Merchant Square with regard to the state level leadership.
NSTonline reported last Saturday that new Sabah PKR state chief, Thamrin, claimed that 17 division chiefs or their representatives had attended the first meeting chaired by him the day before and were all supportive of his leadership of PKR Sabah.
Someone who was at the meeting assures me that Thamrin’s claim is pure fiction.
“Divisional heads who were in attendance were Thamrin for Libaran, Kudat’s Mursalim, Johani Abd Halim of Silam, Kalabakan’s Datuk Dr. Amir, Ghani Medeh of Kinabatangan, Tuaran’s Ansari, Datuk Kong of Tawau and Ranau’s Jonathan Yasin. Thamrin may lay claim to have the support of these seven, though that is seriously debatable”, my source disclosed over the phone.
“It would be a joke, though, to suggest that Hj. Ag Tangah of Kimanis and Jalumin Samin of Kota Belud who also attended the meeting lent their support to the new state leadership”, the source continued.
“Division chiefs who did not attend were that of Keningau, Kota Kinabalu, Tenom, Pensiangan, Beluran, Batu Sapi, Semporna, Beaufort, Papar, Penampang and Putatan. Representatives, in place of some division heads, attended for Sepanggar, Kota Kinabalu, Papar and Sipitang”, my source detailed.
Word on the ground, my source went on, is that more and more, Thamrin is seen as a mere puppet who dances to the tune played by yet another Anwar loyalist, Ansari.
“Ansari is calling the shots. Thamrin hasn’t a clue of what is going on.”, my source explained.
“During the pc after his meeting, Thamrin denied allegations that his predecessor, Azmin Ali, had been undemocratic in settling the matter of his replacement. Do you know that in earlier meetings, before his appointment, Thamrin was most critical of Azmin? Ask the other division chiefs privately, and they will tell you the same. If you’re going to ask, though, it better be soon because a lot of money is being tossed about in the hope of buying support for a decision by HQ that is beginning to turn into a nightmare that KL never imagined would happen. Papar division has already held a meeting to dissolve the division and more will follow unless the problem created by the appointment of Thamrin in total disregard of local sentiment is corrected. Buying the support of divisions will allow some people in KL to save face.”, my source went on.
I said that as far as I knew, PKR wasn’t exactly rolling in money, so who was funding this, if indeed this was true.
