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So Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin may sigh in relief, at least for now. The 2021 budget was approved by Dewan Rakyat in his third and final reading tonight by a very small majority of three votes.
Most Malaysians were glued to news channels and portals, eagerly awaiting the outcome of the bloc’s vote, especially since there had been talk that the budget would be rejected and therefore the government could fall.
This expectation gained popularity after former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Umno stalwart Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah came together to call for a vote against the budget, and after the opposition said they would reject the budget. .
However, the 2021 budget passed with 111 yes and 108 no, and one MP abstained, which turned out to be Razaleigh.
Although the house has 222 MPs, two have died: Liew Vui Keong from Warisan and Hasbullah Osman from Barisan Nasional.
It is more than interesting that three parliamentarians who were supposedly quarantined by Covid-19 (the Minister of Health, Dr. Adham Baba, the Minister of Human Resources, M Saravanan and P Prabakaran from Pakatan Harapan), dressed in personal protective equipment , they voted on the budget. It is a novelty in Malaysia, and perhaps elsewhere as well.
They were allowed to attend Parliament and vote, despite protests from the opposition, because all votes counted, especially for Muhyiddin, who has been under siege from day one.
If the budget had not been approved, it would have meant that Muhyiddin did not get majority support. Some hoped this would force him to resign, opening an opportunity for someone else, possibly Anwar Ibrahim, to take office or for an early general election.
The budget of RM322.5 billion, which was released on November 6, is the largest in Malaysia’s history. It is largely aimed at reducing the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and reviving the economy.
Yet he became a weapon in the treacherous and convoluted arena of Malay politics.
The opposition is desperately trying to overthrow a government that, like many Malaysians, they see as a “back door government.”
The chairman of the Umno advisory board, Razaleigh, yesterday described the ruler Perikatan Nasional as not a legitimate government and Muhyiddin as “not a legitimate prime minister.”
The fact that Razaleigh joined Mahathir, his rival for more than 30 years, in a press conference to ask MPs to vote according to their conscience and across partisan lines speaks volumes about his dislike for the government. current or Muhyiddin, despite the fact that Umno supports the PN government and some members of the Umno are ministers.
Razaleigh and Mahathir obviously expected some Umno MPs to abstain from voting, as the former did, but that did not happen.
Now back to the swashbuckling game that began just before the overthrow of the Pakatan Harapan government by Muhyiddin and his group of merry men.
The PN government is still in a very thin layer, even more so now, after the power game that led to a new mentoring in Perak. Ahmad Faizal Azumu from PPBM is outside as I mean kissing and Shaarani Mohamad from Umno is inside.
Do you expect PPBM to take it easy?
It is clear that Muhyiddin’s PPBM does not trust Umno. And Umno, for his part, does not trust PPBM. They will try to outdo others, stab each other, until the next general election.
Nor will Umno trust another PN partner, PAS, who fully backs Muyhiddin for fear of losing his government post. PAS will also distrust Umno, despite his union with Muafakat Nasional.
Opposition leader Anwar is not giving up his dream of becoming prime minister and Mahathir is not giving up on overthrowing Muhyiddin.
Since the astute Muhyiddin does not risk a vote of confidence or no confidence, and since the chairman of the Dewan Rakyat, chosen by Muhyiddin, is not giving priority to debating motions of no confidence presented by opposition deputies, Anwar , Mahathir and the others will seek other means to overthrow Muhyiddin.
So while Muhyiddin may breathe a sigh of relief, he should know that the keris will not be sheathed so soon.
The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.
