The “lame duck” PM is not so lame duck after all
And that brings us back to the question: is Muhyiddin really the lame duck Prime Minister after all? And that also raises another question: after waiting 25 years to become Prime Minister, will Anwar have to still wait another 25 years?
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Meaning of “lame duck”: an ineffective or unsuccessful person, or a politician in the final days of office and about to leave.
Yes, that is what they say about Muhyiddin Yassin, that he is a lame duck Prime Minister. He was supposed to leave office in August 2020 after just five months in office. Then it was shifted to September 2020, October 2020, November 2020, and finally December 2020.
Now, he is supposed to leave office after the Umno annual assembly of 31st January 2021.
His successor, the man who is going to take over as Malaysia’s ninth Prime Minister or PM9 is already waiting in the wings. And PM9 is going to be Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Anwar Ibrahim, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Shafie Apdal, Najib Tun Razak, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Azmin Ali, and probably another two or three prospects.
As far back as 1996, Anwar’s cronies had been announcing that he was going to take over as Malaysia’s fifth Prime Minister or PM5. During public functions that Anwar graced, he was introduced as “bakal Perdana Menteri Malaysia”. And this was going to happen in the following year in 1997, Malaysians were told.
Anwar’s appointment as Finance Minister in 1991 and Deputy Prime Minister in 1993 was not by chance or kebetulan. It was the first steps to him becoming Prime Minister in 1997. And in 1996, announcements were made that Mahathir was already a “lame duck” Prime Minister because it was going to be a matter of months before Anwar takes over.
By 1998, Mahathir was still Prime Minister and Anwar was still “in waiting”. Eventually, Anwar’s patience wore off and he tried to push Mahathir out by force. Mahathir pushed back and Anwar ended up in jail.
Anwar tried the same thing a year ago in February 2020 and that resulted in the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government and Muhyiddin’s ascension to the throne.
Of course, they accuse Muhyiddin of “stealing” the throne — illegitimate Prime Minister, backdoor Prime Minister, unconstitutional Prime Minister, etc. But one cannot steal the post of Prime Minister. You cannot appoint yourself Prime Minister like how Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor. The power to make someone Prime Minister lies in the hands of His Majesty Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
If the act of appointing Muhyiddin the Prime Minister is an illegal act or a crime, then it was the Agong and not Muhyiddin who committed this crime. And if the Agong appointed Muhyiddin the Prime Minister because His Majesty was tricked, then this is accusing His Majesty of stupidity.
So why attack Muhyiddin for something that His Majesty the Agong did? If Muhyiddin’s appointment is wrong by law, then the Agong is the outlaw, not Muhyiddin.
And now His Majesty the Agong has consented to the proclamation of a six-month emergency, that may or may not be lifted in August. And His Majesty first discussed this with, and obtained the consensus of, his brother-rulers, the Raja-Raja Melayu.
So, again, why attack Muhyiddin when the power to declare an emergency lies with the Agong and not with the Prime Minister?
And that brings us back to the question: is Muhyiddin really the lame duck Prime Minister after all? And that also raises another question: after waiting 25 years to become Prime Minister, will Anwar have to still wait another 25 years?
