IT is genuinely remarkable to hear Muhyiddin Yassin speak about a prime minister’s lack of confidence in parliament.

Lest we forget, the Muhyiddin Yassin who was defeated in the recent general election and is now publicly questioning the prime minister’s majority in parliament, is the same Muhyiddin Yassin – appointed prime minister in 2020 – who had instituted a single-day sitting parliament, declared a state of emergency to pave the way for the suspension of parliament and suspended parliament again after receiving a royal rebuke.

And though the government had always argued these unusual measures were necessary in the name of preventing the spread of Covid-19, in reality these undemocratic ploys were solely done to ensure Muhyiddin could avoid a test of his parliamentary majority.

This is also the same Muhyiddin Yassin, after having exhausted all means to avoid scrutiny from parliament, finally succumbed to political reality and attempted to strike a deal with the opposition to stay in power.

Having tried to solicit parliamentary support from the opposition, it is therefore more puzzling to hear him talk about the unconstitutionality of the recent memorandum of understanding signed by the coalition government led by Anwar Ibrahim.

If Pakatan Harapan at that time were willing to accept a political pact offered by Muhyiddin, one would wonder whether the Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman would also have a similar agreement in place to ensure that MPs toe the party line.

Muhyiddin’s worry about MPs being denied the right to vote according to their conscience may not be unfounded and it is indeed true that the current anti-party hopping law does not require a parliamentarian to vacate his seat if he decides to rebel against his party.

However, if stability is the first order for this coalition government, then the government must not be allowed to collapse through a defeat in confidence motion or supply bills.

I disagree with the fact that MPs should not be forced to vacate their seats if they have voted against their party stance, but equally I also recognise the importance for the coalition government to impose rules and enforce discipline to prevent self-serving defections that may cause sitting government to collapse.

More importantly, if Muhyiddin was so determined that an MP would not be punished by not voting according to party lines, he should have called for a bloc vote to let the numbers speak for themselves and maybe to even call Anwar’s bluff.

Most of all, the Bersatu president could still persuade the 10 Barisan Nasional MPs, GPS and GRS, that initially supported him to rebel against the coalition government.

Instead, Malaysians were treated to a damp squib. Muhyiddin and the PN coalition allowed the confidence motion to be passed by a simple voice vote.

By not registering even a meaningful opposition, there is no greater proof than this that Anwar Ibrahim now has a strong, convincing and formidable majority in parliament. 

Muhyiddin’s loss of premiership has also seemingly sapped the political energy out of him that he has inexplicably given up from becoming the leader of the opposition in parliament.

The opposition leader is typically seen as the prime minister-in-waiting and would be the person to be called to form an alternative government if the present one falls.

Being a veteran politician, Muhyiddin would have understood the significance of being an opposition leader and it is still uncertain whether it was a calculative political move or Muhyiddin was content with playing a reduced role in parliament.

Above all, does this signal that Muhyiddin has also lost the passion and zeal to have a shot at the top job in five years’ time?

As I have written in my previous passage, the Pagoh lawmaker would easily have been made prime minister if not for the stringent anti-party hopping law.

The 15^th general election chapter should also be closed with the conclusion of the confidence motion.

If Muhyiddin and PN did not even call for a divisional vote to validate Anwar’s majority, it would mean that they are equally content to stay as opposition to perform the role of ensuring checks and balances.

And this is a position that is perhaps unusual to Muhyiddin, because throughout his long-standing political career, he was only in opposition for less than two years.

Nevertheless, he must learn and adapt in these five years. The Muhyiddin in opposition must be better than the Muhyiddin in government if he still harbours a wish to return as prime minister. – December 25, 2022.

* Kenneth Cheng has always been interested in the interplay between human rights and government but more importantly he is a father of two cats, Tangyuan and Toufu. When he is not attending to his feline matters, he is most likely reading books about politics and human rights or playing video games. He is a firm believer in the dictum “power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will”.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.