KUALA LUMPUR - Loyal lawmakers rallied behind Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at an emergency meeting Thursday following a call for a no-confidence vote against the premier from within his coalition.
"Nobody (in the coalition) supports this motion. Everyone has rejected this and what has taken place is against the spirit of unity within the coalition.
"This is a collective decision of the Barisan Nasional supreme council," he told reporters after chairing a special meeting of top leaders from 13 of the 14 parties in the Barisan Nasional coalition.
Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Yong Teck Lee made the unprecedented no-confidence call on Wednesday in a serious blow to Abdullah, who has faced pressure to quit since disastrous general elections in March. The SAPP did not attend the gathering.
Abdullah said he would continue to lead the government despite the attempt to topple him.
"I cannot afford to be distracted by issues that keep coming up. I have to be focused with what I have to do. When things like this happen, we have to deal with it," he said.
Abdullah, who is also finance minister, said he would ensure the economy remained stable despite rising political uncertainties over his leadership.
"We have to manage the economy," he said. "This is not something new. I have to accept it. I have my responsibilities. If I keep thinking of people criticising me ... how can I carry out my work."
Malaysian share prices closed 1.3 per cent lower Thursday and broke the 1,200 psychological support level due to heightened political risks and a rise in inflation, dealers said.
Analysts said the move for a no-confidence vote when parliament opens Monday could trigger a ripple effect of dissent within the ruling coalition.
SAPP, which has two members in parliament, said it would decide on Friday whether to quit the coalition. It left open the prospect of joining the opposition alliance led by former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.
After the March polls that gave the opposition a third of parliamentary seats, Anwar needs to win over just 30 government lawmakers to enable him to form a new administration.
Anwar congratulated SAPP's "bravery," while in a brief response Abdullah said Yong was motivated by personal gain.
But some in Abdullah's dominant United Malays National Organisation said the vote would not "see the light of day" because of parliamentary rules that make it easy for the ruling party to block the motion. - AFP/ir
Channel NewsAsia
20/06/08
1 comment:
There is a difference between UMNO and Barisan Nasional. I want to make it clear that it is not the Barisan Nasional (BN) government, but the UMNO government. It is not the government, but UMNO. Barisan Nasional is a coalition of unequals, not equals. UMNO is the big brother in BN. Therefore UMNO must be held responsible; and more importantly, UMNO must not be allowed to hide behind the BN banner. UMNO is the enemy, not BN.
I have come to the conclusion that the easy solution is to completely defeat UMNO in the next elections.
In the 2004 elections (11th General Election), the voters gave good support to Mr.Abdullah Badawi. But reforms did not come. Why? Probably because UMNO had done well in the elections. If UMNO had done well in the elections, then the election results tell UMNO that the voters are satisfied with the status quo. If the voters are satisfied with UMNO, then no reforms are necessary. In the 2008 elections (12th General Elections), UMNO did not do well, but she managed to win. UMNO did lose the 2/3 majority in the Parliament, but she did win, nevertheless. Will UMNO undertake reforms now? I would not be surprised if she did not. Why should she? UMNO is still the winner in the elections; and she can plan to rise and may even succeed to rise again. So, as long as she wins, she will never undertake the reforms. So, how do the voters get the reforms that they need? The voters will get the reforms when UMNO is completely defeated in the 13th General Elections. If UMNO wins zero seats in the next elections (13th General Elections), then some other party would have to rule Malaysia. Let us call it Party B. If UMNO is completely defeated in the next elections (13th General Elections), then Party B would rule Malaysia. Would Party B undertake reforms? If Party B does not undertake reforms, then voters would know what to do.
There is no doubt that UMNO has used gerrymandering to strengthen herself. If we removed gerrymandering from UMNO, then there would be a reduced UMNO. So the non-UMNO voters of Malaysia have good reasons to vote against UMNO.
It is possible that UMNO has used the Police Force to strengthen herself. The Police Force is required to be neutral. But is the Police Force neutral? I appeal to the Police Force to be neutral.
UMNO is a race based political party and also the big brother of BN. So, the complete defeat of UMNO in the next elections is the only way to get reforms. The complete defeat of UMNO in the next elections is the only way to get a new beginning.
UMNO is inclined to believe that Malaysians cannot do anything if they are in any way dissatisfied. The voters, however, have to send a strong message to UMNO that the voters can do something: the voters can vote.
So, the next step for Malaysians is to completely defeat UMNO in the next elections.
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