The Perikatan Nasional coalition is made up of Parti Islam Se-Malaysia and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia among others. Muhyiddin is the president of Bersatu.
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Tuesday (Dec 30) he will resign as chairman of the opposition bloc Perikatan Nasional (PN), effective Jan 1.
In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Muhyiddin thanked those in the bloc’s leadership “who have given me their full support during my time leading PN since its establishment five years ago”.
“I wish the PN leadership and the component parties all the best,” said Muhyiddin, 78.
The PN coalition – which was formed in February 2020 – is made up of Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) among others. Muhyiddin is the president of Bersatu.
Muhyiddin did not reveal the reasons behind his resignation, but it came following a political crisis in the northeastern state of Perlis, whose state assembly is controlled by PN.
The upheaval saw PAS’ Sanglang assemblyman Mohd Shukri Ramli resigning as chief minister and Bersatu’s Kuala Perlis assemblyman Abu Bakar Hamzah replacing him in the post.
Shukri’s resignation came after eight statutory declarations were signed by state assemblymen – three from PAS and five from Bersatu – retracting their support for him.
There are 15 seats in Perlis’ state assembly, and the three PAS assemblymen have since been sacked by the Islamist party. PAS holds six of the remaining seats, Bersatu holds five, and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Parti Keadilan Rakyat holds one.
In response to Muhyddin’s resignation, PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari said that his party will put forward a candidate to take over as PN chairman.
“This individual does not necessarily have to be the party president, but rather someone who is trusted to unite and mobilise the strengths of the parties within PN.
“A restructuring of PN’s organisation will certainly be carried out to place greater emphasis on grassroots and organisational work moving forward,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
Ahmad Fadhli – who is also the Member of Parliament for Pasir Mas – added that Muhyiddin’s decision to relinquish the PN chairmanship was wise and timely, stressing that the coalition needs fresh momentum as it prepares for the next general election.
MUHYIDDIN’S WOES
Separately, Bersatu has been beset by turmoil over Muhyiddin’s leadership of the party.
There have been growing calls by his one-time loyalists for him to step down as president in favour of deputy president Hamzah Zainuddin, 68, political observers previously told CNA.
Earlier in September, at its annual general meeting, Bersatu unanimously endorsed Muhyiddin as its prime minister candidate ahead of the next general election, which must be held by February 2028.
But the Bersatu meeting was rocked by a public display of dissent against Muhyiddin, with some delegates heckling him to step down as president.
Speaking earlier at the meeting, Muhyiddin had criticised plans to “topple the president” via the collection of statutory declarations from party members, saying that this was against Bersatu’s constitution.
Days after the meeting, PN coalition partner PAS also openly hinted its reluctance to support Muhyiddin as the PM candidate.
In a veiled criticism, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang said that he was not fit to be PN’s prime ministerial candidate due to his age and health, maintaining that a healthier leader should be nominated, news outlet Free Malaysia Today had reported.
Abdul Hadi, 78, had added then that the Islamist party would choose someone who is “healthy and under 70 years old” as its prime minister candidate.
He later said that he was not targeting anyone in his remarks, and had meant that he and PAS spiritual leader Hashim Jasin, 86, were too old for the role.
In 2023, Muhyiddin had also caused a stir when he backpedalled on his decision not to defend his presidency at Bersatu’s internal polls that year.
Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-muhyiddin-yassin-resign-perikatan-nasional-5754046
