I refer to the Malaysiakini report No-confidence motion rejected, opposition stages walkout .

By rejecting the no confidence motion proposed by the opposition alliance, Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia has reduced the status of Parliament to a mere rubber stamp institution. His excuse is that he doesn't want to be seen by the whole world as ‘stupid’, whatever that means.

So, what else is new?

A no confidence motion can be introduced any number of times. Why fear it? The fact that the motion has been rejected shows that there is genuine concern that it will be carried.

It is pointless for the opposition alliance to re-introduce the no confidence motion at some future date. The speaker will simply trot out the same old excuses that it is not urgent, not a matter of public interest and not specific.

Any one reason is sufficient to reject the motion. Nothing could be more specific than a no confidence motion.

The rejection this time is not of course Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's doing. In fact, he does not have to do anything. There are people around him who fear losing their positions should the prime minister be voted out.

So, they are willing to go to any lengths to see that their man remains in the job. This can be seen in the way the inspector-general of police turned the 5-kilometre area around Parliament into a war zone.

A court order was also obtained. Why did the courts, seeking to regain the credibility and the trust and confidence of the people, issue such an order? There were no grounds for it. And if the grounds cited turned out to be trumped up, the courts must take a serious view of the earlier request by the police and take a dim view of any future such request.

What next?

Assuming the opposition alliance's plans to seize the reins of government by Sept 16 remain on track, the next step would of course be a petition to His Majesty, the King, with the signatures and sworn affidavits of all MPs who have lost confidence in the prime minister.

Here, it can be expected that the police will obtain another court order and turn a 5-kilometre area around the King's palace into a war zone to prevent the submission of the petition. The King can step in and make known that he is willing to accept such a petition.

The Royal Malaysian Police, being the King's police, have no choice but to comply or risk His Majesty's wrath and displeasure. Heads will roll in the police force should the department defy the King.

Let the no confidence motion go ahead and get it over with. Or, allow the petition to the King. We need to settle the political question as soon as possible so that the country can focus on the economy.

In hindsight, Abdullah brought the simmering political crisis upon himself by ignoring the results of the March 8 general elections.

For starters, he belittled the role played by MPs from Sabah and Sarawak in the formation of his government and tried to pawn them off with some token representation in the federal cabinet and other government positions.

This remains a sore point with the MPs in the East and will work against Abdullah in the event of a no confidence motion or a petition to the King seeking to oust the prime minister.

Abdullah should also have reserved some cabinet posts for the opposition alliance. This may be unprecedented in Malaysia but is in fact the norm in other democracies. It is high time the ruling party in Malaysia shared the government fairly with all parties concerned.

Had Abdullah done this, he would today be sitting comfortably in his seat instead of looking over his shoulder all the time and having to run fast to stand still in the same spot. But the man obviously cannot see this.