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Key Highlights
Tired of being second fiddle, BN wants top spot
‘Noble vs topple’: Same script, different agendas
Govt hits brakes on AG-PP Bill
Tired of being second fiddle, BN wants top spot
Sources have revealed that BN plans to contest at least 115 parliamentary seats in the next general election, aiming to reclaim its role as the leader of the federal government.
The coalition’s chairperson, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, reportedly outlined this strategy during a closed-door retreat in Putrajaya over the weekend, emphasising that BN intends to prove it is more than just a “second fiddle” to Pakatan Harapan.
With Harapan’s support among non-Malay voters seen as weakening, Zahid is said to believe that winning more seats than Harapan would position BN to lead the government in GE16.
The retreat drew nearly 200 delegates from all BN component parties.
BN, ousted from power in the 2018 general election, has since navigated a complex series of political manoeuvres: first backing the 2020 coup that toppled the Harapan government, then orchestrating Perikatan Nasional chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin’s removal from the prime ministership, and finally forging a partnership with Harapan following the last general election.
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‘Noble vs topple’: Same script, different agendas
Collaborating with a US political consultancy firm to lobby for Anwar Ibrahim’s release from prison should not be equated with working with foreign entities to purportedly topple the government using “bankers and Zionists”.
This is the argument of former PKR vice-president Sivarasa Rasiah, who confirmed that in 2016, party leaders, including himself, were in communication with a US political consultancy firm on freeing Anwar.
He emphasised that lobbying for the release of political detainees was normal and "perfectly acceptable".
Sivarasa said at the time of the emails, Anwar's detention on a second sodomy charge had already been referred to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions.
Anwar has always maintained that the charges against him were fabricated by political rivals.
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Govt hits brakes on AG-PP Bill
The government has decided to defer the parliamentary debate on the bill to separate the powers of the attorney-general and public prosecutor, referring it instead to a parliamentary special select committee (PSSC) for refinement.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said announced the deferment during the bill’s second reading in the Dewan Rakyat.
“This step ensures that reforms strengthen institutional independence responsibly and at the same time, reinforce transparency to Parliament,” Azalina said.
The PSSC will be chaired by Azalina and include members from various parties, including William Leong, Syahredzan Johan, Adly Zahari, Noraini Ahmad, Roy Angau Gingkoi, Lo Su Fui, Ramkarpal Singh, Hamzah Zainudin, Takiyuddin Hassan, Ronald Kiandee, and Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
The decision comes amid criticism from civil society organisations and PKR lawmakers, who argued that the bill in its current form “concentrates power between the prime minister and the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC)”.
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