Musa Hitam on LKS’ shopping list for new PM
Razaleigh comes off second-best as DAP veteran speculates on opposition’s moves to replace Najib
(Free Malaysia Today) – Musa Hitam, a former deputy prime minister to Mahathir Mohamad, was touted last night as a possible caretaker prime minister for Malaysia in a new government to replace Najib Razak and the Barisan Nasional.
Musa’s name was raised by DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang in a speech at a party event on Saturday night, three months after he had said he was willing to work with Dr Mahathir towards putting together a new cross-party coalition of politicians.
At the same time, Lim delivered a minor slight of Umno stalwart Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, who had teamed up with Musa in the 1980s to challenge Mahathir for the Umno leadership.
Lim said Musa would be an “ideal candidate to be caretaker Prime Minister”, but first arrangements had to be made for him to become an MP by forcing an early by-election. Lim did not discuss whether that would be possible under current election rules, with the next general election less than three years away.
However, he added that “otherwise, the search should look at other candidates like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah or someone else from Sabah or Sarawak”.
Lim did not say why he placed Musa before Tengku Razaleigh, the MP for Gua Musang and the longest-serving MP in the House, and who has been named by former law minister Zaid Ibrahim in May as the People’s PM.
Both men had been part of the informal Gagasan Rakyat coalition of small opposition parties after Tengku Razaleigh formed the Semangat 46 splinter party when Umno was deregistered as a result of his challenge against Mahathir.
The coalition floundered at the 1990 and 1994 elections and collapsed after Tengku Razaleigh led his supporters back into Umno and the DAP later teamed up with PAS and Anwar Ibrahim’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat to form the Barisan Alternatif and the Pakatan Rakyat.
Lim, speaking at a constituency event in Gelang Patah, Johor, said former Bar Council president and Bersih chairman Ambiga Sreenevasan had suggested last week that a caretaker government be formed to govern Malaysia, suggesting that Najib step down for investigations into 1Malaysia Development Bhd-linked funds being deposited in private banking accounts held in Najib’s name.
He said the current Cabinet were tainted by conflict of interest and should not hold office during the investigations.
“Malaysians must be prepared to think the unthinkable and grapple with issue which they would dismiss as impossible or improbable only a week or a month ago,” he said.
