Dr M must move fast, or it’s Ku Li for PM
Muhyiddin will lose out if Parliament seizes the initiative to oust Najib, says Shahbudin Husin.
(Free Malaysia Today) – Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah will be anointed Prime Minister if Parliament seizes the initiative from Dr Mahathir Mohamad in bringing about the ouster of Najib Abdul Razak, according to political analyst Shahbudin Husin.
Otherwise, he says, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin will be the man.
Reviewing the debate currently raging on the issue, Shahbudin says Mahathir’s choice of Muhyiddin will be supported by “the lower levels of Umno” while Razaleigh will have the backing of Pakatan Rakyat and perhaps some MPs from Umno as well as Barisan Nasional representatives from Sabah and Sarawak.
He says Muhyiddin’s chances will depend on how fast Mahathir moves, although he notes that the former prime minister appears to have stepped up his campaign against Najib, with more frequent mentions of Muhyiddin as the appropriate person to take over the Prime Minister’s job.
Shahbudin says Pakatan Rakyat appears to agree with Mahathir that Najib must be replaced, but notes that none of the coalition’s figures have indicated a willingness to accept Muhyiddin as the replacement.
Instead, he points out, DAP leader Lim Kit Siang, Raub MP Ariff Sabri and Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli have openly endorsed Razaleigh.
With Najib showing a determination to stay on, Shahbudin says, Mahathir and his supporters in Umno must move with even more speed than they are doing now if they want Muhyiddin to take the Prime Minister’s post.
