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Saving Zahid
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Key Highlights
Saving Zahid
Penang ouster
Mukhriz's gambit
Saving Zahid
Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail raised eyebrows when he exercised his ministerial powers under the Societies Act and - inadvertently or not - saved Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi from any further challenges to his position.
Saifuddin had invoked Section 70 of the Societies Act to exempt Umno from a section of the law which would have empowered the Registrar of Societies (ROS) to deregister the party for non-compliance with its rules.
This is after the ROS allegedly found irregularities in Umno's decision to bar competition for the top two posts in its forthcoming party polls.
Critics claim the move had contravened Umno's constitution.
Zahid controls the majority of BN lawmakers, and his support is deemed vital for the survival of the unity government coalition.
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Penang ouster
The Penang Legislative Assembly passed a motion to vacate the seats of four Perikatan Nasional assemblypersons for violating the state's anti-hopping law.
The quartet - Afif Bahardin (Seberang Jaya), Zulkifli Ibrahim (Sungai Aceh), Khaliq Mehtab Mohd Ishaq (Bertam), and Zolkifly Md Lazim (Teluk Bahang) - contested under Pakatan Harapan in the 2018 general election.
Two of them, Afif and Zulkifli, were from PKR but later joined Bersatu.
However, Khaliq and Zolkifly are from Bersatu and had never quit the party, although Bersatu did leave Harapan in 2020.
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Mukhriz's gambit
Faced with the threat of impending obsolescence, Mukhriz Mahathir is steering his party Pejuang further right ahead of the forthcoming state elections.
Having split from his father, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Mukhriz appears determined to bring Pejuang into PN.
PN is led by Bersatu, in which Mukhriz was the deputy president until he was ousted in 2020 during the Sheraton Move.
Political scientist Wong Chin Huat said the Pejuang president's gambit is likely one of desperation.
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Views that matter
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