Commentary by Mustafa K. Anuar

THE euphoria following the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-Barisan Nasional (BN) triumph in the recent by-elections in Johor hardly ended when Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman dropped a bombshell, announcing the party’s decision to leave the government bloc with immediate effect.

This has effectively deprived the government bench of its coveted two-thirds majority in parliament, which is usually needed when it comes to amending the Federal Constitution.

What prompted Muda to make this controversial move was the granting of a discharge not amounting to an acquittal to Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who faced 47 court charges. That seemed to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Syed Saddiq feared that dropping the charges would trigger a normalising of corruption in our society where graft is already rife, and that this went against his principles.

This, in turn, troubled Syed Saddiq as he felt PH had backtracked on its electoral promises, particularly to initiate a wide range of political reforms.

Predictably, this triggered a verbal storm between the Muar MP and his former friends in PH, who felt that the former had been ungrateful to the coalition.

Syed Saddiq was reminded of the support given to him by PH that enabled him to gain the Muar parliamentary constituency in the last general election. In short, he is an ingrate.

But some observers may argue that providing criticisms, especially if they are meant well, to an ally should not be construed as being unthankful and disloyal.

Anyway, PH politicians were not the only ones who were miffed by Syed Saddiq’s withdrawal.

The coalition’s party supporters were up in arms as they feared Muda’s exit could threaten the stability of the unity government, which is facing an opposition that often warns of bringing the Anwar Ibrahim administration down.

Some members of the public were also troubled as they felt that PH was their only hope to serve as a formidable bulwark against the emboldened Perikatan Nasional (PN), which is generally perceived to be harmful to a multiethnic, multireligious and multicultural Malaysia.  

Such reasoning, however, suggests that these people chose PH not necessarily out of unconditional love. It is just that they cannot see any credible alternatives to PN.

They see themselves as akin to being positioned in a place between a rock and a hard place, hence the expression of throwing support around the lesser of two evils.

That is why Muda fashions itself as the so-called third force, which voters can opt for as an alternative to the two big coalitions.

But then, Muda is not much of a third force when you consider the fact that it only has one MP and one state assemblyman to boot. Worse, it does not have grassroots support given its nascent position.

Nonetheless, the supposed idealism of Muda is appreciated, especially in a political landscape where much-needed criticisms within the PH-BN pact itself may not be taken kindly.

That is why despite its lack of political strength, Muda can still play a useful role from the opposition bench in providing constructive criticisms and at the same time, giving support to the government’s agenda when it comes to voting in parliament on constitutional and institutional reforms.

Syed Saddiq has a role to play in parliament for as long as he stays true to his principles. – September 12, 2023.