KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia: Leaders of Malaysia's ruling Barisan Nasional coalition have vowed to stand steadfastly by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after a small party in the coaltion, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), raised the issue of a vote of no confidence against the Prime Minister when Parliament meets on Monday.
UMNO vice president told Bernama news agency that all BN MPs should reject any motion of no confidence, while the president of the MCA and Gerakan acting president have both said that since the country and people are going through very challenging times, what the country needs now is political and economic stability.
"It would be best that all of us, both the BN and the Pakatan Rakyat, accept the results of the 12th General Election. Our priority should be to continue to work hard to fulfil our election pledges, restore confidence and stability for the nation," said MCA president Ong Ka Ting, in a statement.
Dr Koh Tsu Koon said Gerakan was surprised by the announcement and felt such a drastic political move would only add to uncertainty, disrupting efforts in reforms.
He said: "I can still remember Yong announcing in May a deadline of August for the Prime Minister and Federal Government to address the grievances of the Sabah people.
"It is now only mid June. Yong doesn't seem to give the Prime Minister and the federal government enough time and chance to make changes, overcome problems and address the issues concerned."
Calling for the expulsion of Yong and SAPP from the coalition, Mohd Ali Rustam of UMNO said "the move to table the motion is irresponsible and undemocratic".
The UMNO Vice President said all BN components must have discipline and discuss party matters within the party.
"In BN meetings, he (Yong) expresses support towards Abdullah as the Prime Minister and BN chairman, how come outside he is saying loss of confidence in the prime minister who is also BN chairman?" he said.
The BN is reportedly planning an emergency meeting on Thursday, where the issue of the no confidence motion is believed to be on the agenda.
However, Malaysia's speaker of Parliament has said he has not received a notice from any party for a motion of no confidence at next week's Parliament sitting.
According to the Speaker, Pandikar Amin Mulia, any party can submit a request to table a motion based on two provisions under the Standing Orders, one of which is Order 18(1). This Order tables a motion of public interest deemed as urgent and only needs notice of 48 hours or two clear working days.
"I have not received anything yet. No notice has been submitted to my office so far," Pandikar told Bernama.
Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Yong Teck Lee said on Wednesday that his party had lost confidence in PM Abdullah's leadership, and two party MPs would support a motion for a vote of no confidence against the prime minister in the Parliament sitting on Monday.
"Whether the motion will be tabled by our MPs or another MP will be decided in due course," Yong said at a news conference, without mentioning if his party was pulling out of the ruling. - CNA/sf
Channel NewsAsia
19/06/08
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.
So, the next step for Malaysians is to completely defeat UMNO in the next elections.
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