'You would think that the PM's strategy for 'unity' would be to rally the nation but when his deputy goes ballistic on ‘Malay supremacy', it's a sure sign Najib is checkmated.'

Is Muhyiddin sharpening his knife?

Doc: Interesting article especially the statement that Umno has two views in remaining in power - to become a Malay/Muslim extremist or to return to the middle ground. Najib's ‘1Malaysia' concept is so full of holes that the rakyat did not buy into it from day one. On top of that, it's being sabotaged from inside by Umno.

If Umno decides to be a Malay/Muslim extremist party, it will alienate the progressive-thinking Malays, non-Malays, the East Malaysians and the international community as we are already witnessing. Remember what happened to PAS when it showed it ultra-Muslim stance in the 1980s and early 90s? The Malays themselves got wary of them.

There will be no support internationally in the form of foreign funds and there will be a further depletion of local investment from Malaysian themselves which will further widen the nation's deficit.

A ‘no money' situation leads to an unhappy rakyat which will be reflected in the polls. Anyway, it goes without saying we are witnessing the fall of Umno. What's worrying is that Umno will drag Malaysia down with it.

Jiminy Qrikert: For those of us who gather for coffee-shop politics, it has become pretty obvious that Umno president and Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is already under extreme pressure from his deputy Muhyiddin Yassin the moment Utusan Malaysia came out with their racist articles, repeatedly published with impunity.

You would think that the prime minister's strategy for 'unity' would be to rally the nation but when his deputy goes ballistic on ‘Malay supremacy', it's a sure sign Najib is checkmated. It's easier to appeal to emotions than to logic. Malay supremacy is emotional. ‘1Malaysia' demands a huge, huge dose of logic to process for the average man especially if he considers himself to be a 'privileged bumiputera'.

Najib is tainted internally and internationally. Muhyiddin is 'clean' to his supporters and he is championing 'Ketuanan Melayu.' They have seen some gains appealing to Malay emotions. Now they need to scale it up. The only way their scheme will fail is when the majority of Malays reject it and non-Malays stay calm amidst the hysterics.

Jbss: Correction, Muhyidin is not clean. As menteri besar of Johor, he grabbed unlawfully land belonging to Stamford Holdings (Singapore). After a prolonged legal battle, the Johor government was ordered to pay millions in compensation. Before he could do more damage, then PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad pulled him out of Johor. He has no credibility with investors, both nationally and internationally.

Cala: The BN coalition may lose in the next general elections. At the heart of the problem is that after the debacle of March 8, 2008, how could Umno lead a totally shattered BN to fight in the next polls?

Umno has sensed the urgency of time. They have to do something to lure back the voters. One way is to fight head-on with Pakatan Rakyat to prove that they are equally inclusive in governance (which Najib is trying to do superficially). The other way is to appeal for the lost Malay votes by emphasising ‘Malay supremacy' (which Muhyiddin is showing his prowess at). Either way is fraught with bobby traps.

Najib's seemingly middle-ground approach lacks sincerity and makes little dent on the non- Malays. Muhyiddin's Malay-only elitist's concept is not helping other non-Malay parties who are still suffering from injuries sustained from the last polls.

Time is running out for Najib and Muhyiddin. There is thus a genuine fear that the BN may lose in the next general elections.

Keturunan Malaysia: Yes, there is indeed a genuine fear that BN may be defeated in the next general elections and this fear has manifested itself in the form of an unfamiliar cool shiver running from the spine down of BN leaders giving rise to more and more contradictory words and actions - well akin to a ship without a captain drifting aimlessly in the open sea.

One of the main cause, if not the main cause, is, of course, there exists a former PM that could never stop playing PM even after stepping down quite a while back. A racist that only knows and wants the country to be ruled the way he knows best - by divide and rule. To him it is - ‘If Najib is not listening to me, then let it be Muhyiddin'.

If Najib wants to survive, he must take this bull by the horns. For us Malaysians, until real change comes to pass, we do not have much choice - it is either Najib or (Dr) Muhyiddin.

SusahKes: Knowing that Umno politics has a ‘kill or be killed' mindset since the days of Mahathir, I am not surprised if Muhyiddin is eyeing the No 1 post sooner than expected.

Well, if the man above you has so much scandals attached to him that they make him an ineffective leader locally and internationally, then it's hard to believe that the power-crazy Umno ultras are going to obedient boy scouts. Just look at what happened to former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

And if Mahathir is behind the scene, directing as he gets every opportunity, then you can be assured that the old man's ultimate goal (apart from permanently burying Anwar Ibrahim politically) is to ensure his son's political future. That is the only way Mahathir can be 100 percent assured that no one will dig up his shenanigans as PM.

Najib is weak - that I do not have any doubt. The man's got too much dirt to walk out in public without someone pointing to the many holes in his robes. I believe many Umno power-crazy leaders are like the proverbial crocodile just watching and waiting for its victim.

Quigonbond: This seems to be a repeat of the 1987 Mahathir-Razaleigh tussle. When elephants fight, the ants (the masses) are collateral damage. My suggestion - since Najib is already Machiavellian as seen in the way he deals with Anwar, he might just as well go all the way and ‘retire' Muhyiddin and his extremists within Umno with the ISA.

This way, he has a fighting chance against Pakatan. Otherwise, Pakatan just need not make any mistakes and watch BN self- destruct.