Najib stronger than ever, set to win GE14, says analyst

Updated 6 years ago · Published on 12 Dec 2017 11:00AM · 6 Comments

Prime Minister Najib Razak is confident that Barisan Nasional will win up to 160 seats at next year's elections. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, December 12, 2017.        

PRIME Minister Najib Razak is on course to victory at the 14th general election next year, thanks to a “personal deal” struck with PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, said a political analyst.

By year-end, Najib will be politically stronger as the deal with PAS has effectively blindsided his arch-enemy, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and the Pakatan Harapan opposition coalition which the former prime minister now leads, said James Chin, the director of the Asia Institute at the University of Tasmania.

PAS severed ties with DAP over the latter’s opposition to hudud, a move which led to the collapse of the Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition.

In April, the Islamist party created history when Hadi’s private member’s bill was tabled in the Dewan Rakyat. The bill to amend the Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 is better known by its Malay acronym RUU355.

“Najib has promised Hadi that Umno will support RUU355… Most legal experts believe that once RUU355 is passed by Parliament, it will be the first step in altering Malaysia’s largely secular federal constitution,” Chin said in his analysis.

“The unwritten deal between Hadi and Najib is that once Najib wins the general election, Umno will adopt RUU355 as a government bill.”

The electoral strategy is for PAS to play “spoiler” at GE14 by creating as many three-cornered fights as possible in 110 to 120 rural Malay-Muslim seats, which are targeted by Dr Mahathir’s party, Bersatu, and PAS splinter party, Amanah.

Traditionally, three-cornered fights have favoured the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional and with the spit vote, BN will win the bulk of the Malay seats and, therefore, win GE14, he said.

“Najib is so confident of this strategy that he has told his inner circles that Umno is aiming to take 140-160 seats in the 222-seat Parliament,” Chin said.

The Australian-based academic said Najib has largely deflected the 1Malaysia Development Bhd scandal despite the opposition’s “Love Malaysia, end kleptocracy” rallies and attempts to link the prime minister to the purchase of luxury assets, like real estate, paintings and jewellery.

Najib, he said, has also used Budget 2018, termed the “election budget”, to target the ruling coalition’s traditional supporters.

“By the end of the year, Najib will be politically stronger. His deal with PAS has effectively blindsided Mahathir and PH, and the 1MBD corruption allegations are by and large considered ‘old news’ by the all-important rural Malay electorate,” Chin said, adding that 2017 couldn’t have been a better year for the prime minister. – December 12, 2017.

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Comments

  • EVERYONE KNOWS THIS. HAVE KNOWN THIS SINCE THE BREAKUP OF PAKATAN, IN FACT AMANAH KNEW AND WARNED OF THIS BEFORE.

    The question really is, DOES THE MALAY AND MUSLIM OWE OTHERS IN THIS COUNTRY AN ACCOUNT? IF NOT WHY SHOULD ANYONE GIVE A CRAP ABOUT PALESTINE AND PROBLEMS AND ISSUES OF THE MALAYS?

    Posted 6 years ago by Bigjoe Lam · Reply

  • The position and support of the people towards Najib has been stronger and stronger as the people see all the development and progress of the people and the country is Najib and BN's efforts. Although his time of served as prime minister not yet like Mahathir, many changes were made only to ensure the people continue to live comfortably and safely.

    Posted 6 years ago by Liyana Jamal · Reply

  • Memanglah hakikat Datuk Seri Najib and BN tetap akan menang kelak sebab pakatan pembangkang lari bertempiaran dan keliru. Yang penting, perlu juga undi para ahli pembangkang yang berwibawa, barulah rakyat tetap dapat menikmati keselesaan pemerintahan BN ! Beli satu, dapatlah satu !!!

    Posted 6 years ago by Malaysia Forward · Reply

  • THIS IS NO SIMPLY STRATEGIC MACHIAVELLIAN POLITICS. THIS IS MORALLY REPREHENSIBLE. This "personal deal" is a covert, even unconstitutional, change of the nature of the nation. ITS PREDATORY - OF THE OTHERS IN THIS NATION AND ESPECIALLY SARAWAK AND SABAH. Non-Muslim and especially Sabah and Sarawak and assumed THIS WILL NEVER HAPPEN - GUARANTEED AS A NATION. If this is is legitimate, predatory is acceptable, then why not what happened to the Palestine, why not predatory economics of the Malays?

    Posted 6 years ago by Bigjoe Lam · Reply

  • Najib is stronger not because he is getting more votes; but because the opposition has lost their way after four years of aimlessness. The votes given to them in 2013 are not going to Najib but really going down the jambans because they dont see any hope in Pakatan Bankrap. Almost half of the people who supported
    the Opp in 2013 will recoil in horror at the prospect of voting for Mahathir and his new cronies.












    Posted 6 years ago by Ju bur · Reply

  • IN THE UNLIKELY EVENT that Pakatan wins the parliament, what does the "new country" get?

    A 92yo interim manager. What will he do differently from the 22 years of abuse? Has he articulated that to all?




    Posted 6 years ago by Ju bur · Reply