PKR fracture will weaken future support for Pakatan, BN ministers say

KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 — As the ugly tussle over the Selangor mentri besar seat continues to unfold, Barisan Nasional (BN) has predicted that the infighting within PKR would affect overall support for Pakatan Rakyat (PR).

Government ministers said the problems highlight underlying issues within the opposition coalition, which groups three disparate parties.

Home Affairs Deputy Minister Datuk Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar argued that the present state of affairs showed that the opposition coalition is unfit to govern.

“They don’t deserve Putrajaya. Malaysians deserve a better government and leaders to lead them forward to a more challenging future,” he said.

De facto law minister Nancy Shukri said the problems will erode voter confidence at state level even if support for PR at the federal level remains unchanged.

“If you compare with Barisan, there is sincerity in putting their promises into reality,” she told Malay Mail Online in a series of text messages.

International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said in a text message that the split between PAS’ support for the current mentri besar (MB) versus PKR’s continuous efforts to remove him would be a “precursor of more cracks in Pakatan”.

Yesterday, de facto PKR leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim claimed the decision to remove Selangor MB Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim was finalised by the party in March, calling it an extension of the “Kajang Move”.

Khalid had survived the abortive “Kajang Move”, the strategy engineered by his party to oust him from the position last March, but surfacing controversies in the state have since renewed the push to have him replaced.

A by-election was called to pave the way for Anwar to eventually replace Khalid, but a court decision led to a change of plans. Anwar’s wife and party president Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail contested for the Kajang seat vacated by the party’s own Lee Chin Cheh, and won.

Khalid had been resisting the ouster and maintained that he will serve until his term ends. In the meantime, PKR has nominated Dr Wan Azizah to take over the state’s top position during a PR presidential council last week.

Although DAP and PKR leaders are reportedly in agreement to remove Khalid, a faction in PAS, led by the Islamist party’s president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and several other powerful leaders, has questioned the move and even showed strong backing for Khalid.

Nancy pointed out that the opposition coalition’s credibility is also “questionable with the game played by Anwar and his cronies”.

“Now even PAS is not supportive of Anwar’s move which clearly indicates that even Anwar does not have control over everything, even though he is trying to show that he does.   

“If there are snap polls, the Chinese will be the deciding factor, in this case, DAP. Malays are divided between PAS and PKR,” she said, adding that with the right candidate, BN would be able to win more seats.

The Batang Sadong MP took a step further, saying PR’s dream to capture Putrajaya seemed unattainable with the present crisis.

“Dream to capture Putrajaya? Not with the way PKR is behaving. Obviously, there is no maturity in handling their political crisis. This is where BN is still better off compared to PKR.

“I think it is because they are suspicious towards each other, causing them to not be able to come up with a consensus in making such decision,” she said, adding that it is a good opportunity for BN to “strengthen itself and do better”.

“A country cannot be run by political parties that do not have trust towards each other,” she said.

Gerakan president Datuk Mah Siew Keong pointed out that with no consensus among the coalition members, snap polls would be inevitable.

He also pointed out the endless problems faced by PR even within two terms of governing the state.

“It has only been one year and Selangor is fighting. Can we imagine if Pakatan running the federal government?

“I hope the voters will be more cautious of Pakatan’s future promises,” the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said in a text message.

Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan pointed out the bread and butter issues plaguing the state, including water shortages, have been pushed to the back burner because of the infighting.

“In the event of snap polls, I believe Selangor voters are fed-up and will be ready to punish Pakatan,” he said.

Deputy Women’s Minister Datin Paduka Chew Mei Fun said BN should seize this opportunity to prove itself.

“I think what the people wish is the government’s main concerns and ultimate objective should be on the welfare and wellbeing and development of the state.

“Because of this, everybody is actually not focusing on the state development and the benefit of the people will be affected.

“The most important thing for BN is that everybody must work hard to perform,” she said.