A game that Anwar Ibrahim lost

At Putrajaya, Najib, in his capacity as BN chief in Perak, announced that the Barisan is ready to form the government now that it has the necessary numbers to command the majority. From left are Nasaruddin, Hee, Osman and Jamaluddin. - Starpix

It was a high stakes game that Anwar Ibrahim started and he has ended up losing the Perak state government. There can be no justification for elected representatives to defect to another party. It does not matter what parties they are from. Unfortunately there are no laws to prevent such party defections.

With the exception of DAP's Karpal Singh, not many Pakatan Rakyat seemed to favour such laws as they believed that there could be BN elected representatives who would join them. The possibilities of greater power blinded their judgement and ethical positions. Tian Chua, for example, went on record to justify party hopping. Another PAS leader justified on religious moral grounds that it was acceptable for BN men to cross over to Pakatan.

The PKR tried luring BN representatives to join the party and even set a Sept 16 deadline of forming the next federal government. It failed but many people believed it would take place. In the end, it was just a sham. Then the Pakatan Rakyat tried to woo BN men in Penang, Negri and last week, the Bota state assemblymen. The floodgates, so to speak, were opened.

A dangerous political game was played out and in the end, when the BN decided to come in, they walked away with a prized state. There is now talk that the same game would be played in Negri Sembilan by both sides. The bottom line is there would no dissolution of the Perak state assembly and a new Mentri Besar would be sworn in with speculation of more defections from PKR.

Nizar to meet Sultan of Perak

The MB of Perak has been granted an audience by the Sultan of Perak at 5pm. Mohd Nizar is likely to request that the state assembly be dissolved and fresh elections be held but with three PKR and one DAP assemblymen now joining BN, the game is as good as over. Perak BN leaders would probably seek an audience with the Sultan and asked that they be given the right to take over the state government.

Bota Assemblyman also missing now?

Breaking news: Perak assemblymen Jalamuluddin Radzi, Osman Mohd Jailu, Nasarudin Hashim and Hee Yit Foong at DPM's Office now.

The word in Perak now is that Bota state assemblyman Nasarudin Hashim has also gone "missing" with speculations that he could be returning to Umno. Last week, he had announced his decision to quit Umno to join PKR. But with the Perak state government on the verge of collapsing, the Bota assemblyman could well be changing his decision. According to the Malaysian Insider, the Perak MB said that he had unconfirmed reports that Nasarudin has been "abducted" with Nasarudin's wife claiming he had been taken by Umno leaders to meet DPM Najib Tun Razak in Putrajaya. The political drama seems to be getting more bizarre with each passing hour.

Fast and furious in Perak - Part Two

At Putrajaya, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has called for a press conference. The two former PKR state assemblymen Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Mohd Osman Mohd Jailu are expected to be present. They are also expected to rejoin Umno. In Ipoh, the Perak DAP has denied that Jelapang assemblyman Hee Yit Foong has quit the party as reported by the media.

Fast and furious in Perak

Hee Yit Foong's service centre in Jelapang remains closed, adding more fuel to talk of her leaving the ruling coalition.

It's fast and furious in Perak.The stage is set for a showdown in Perak. The two PKR state assemblymen - Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Mohd Osman Mohd Jailu - have declared themselves as independents. Malaysiakini quoted DAP assemblywoman Hee Yit Foong as confirming that she has quit the party to be an independent too. If that is true, then the Perak state government has collapsed.

Hee has continued to be mssing from state meetings while her service centre has remained closed. The MB, Mohammad Nizar, scheduled a press conference at 1pm, but postponed it. The press conference was said to be his decision to announce his plans to dissolve the state assembly but he would need the consent of the Sultan of Perak.

The Pakatan Rakyat state government should now call for an emergency state assembly meeting. Today, the New Straits Times quoted Speaker V. Sivakumar as saying the two ex PKR duo would be barred from attending. The newspaper quoted him as saying that he had the power to declare the seat vacant and he stood by his decision despite being overruled by the Election Commission.

The MB has little choice, at this stage, but to convene the special sitting to show he still has the support of the majority of the elected representatives. If he wishes to call for fresh elections, the MB has to get the approval of the Sultan of Perak. The MB alone cannot decide on that, that is clearly stipulated under the state constitution. But given the situation now, the Perak opposition leader Tajol Rosli can ask for the right to form the new state government.

For Hee, her source of unhappiness is with the state DAP leadership. Despite being more senior than her DAP colleagues, she was by-passed for key state government positions including the state executive councillor post. Hee also has difficulties with certain national DAP leaders, according to talk. Internal party squabbles and personal ambitions appears to have taken a toll on the Perak state government which is on the verge of collapse. The talk is that a few more Pakatan Rakyat assemblymen would also declare themselves as independents.

Check Star Online for more updates.

Options running out for Perak government

The Perak state government has suffered a major setback following the decision of the Elections Commission. The EC has maintained that there would be no by-elections and that the two - Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Mohd Osman Mohd Jailu - are still the assemblymen for Behrang and Changkat Jering respectively, The Star Online reported.

The Perak state government can still challenge the decision in court but it would be a major legal hurdle as there are enough court precedents to rule against the validity of the undated resignation letters presented to the Speaker earlier.

But as the court process takes place, should the Pakatan state government file a case, it is already on the brink of collapsing. With the latest developments, the BN is just short of one assemblyman from forming the new government.

Jamaluddin has already quit the PKR, saying he would not be joining any other political party and would remain an independent member.

There has been talk that the remaining PR elected representatives may quit en masse to force by-elections but it may not be a wise move. The law now stipulates that any MP or state assemblyman who quits his seat would be banned from contesting in the elections for five years.

The ruling was made when Datuk Shahrir Samad quit his Johor Baru parliamentary seat to contest in a by-election as an independent in 1988. He won with a 12,613 vote majority and the laws were subsequently amended.

Now that Jamaludin has made clear his stand, all eyes are on Changkat Jering assemblyman Osman Jailu. If Osman also becomes an independent, the situation in the House becomes too close to call.

The MB may have no choice but to convene an emergency state assembly meeting to prove he still enjoys the support of the majority. In short, he would need to show he has the numbers - even if it is only a majority of one.

Perak intrigue gets murkier and more dramatic

LATEST: No show by Jamaluddin and Osman

Jamaluddin Mat Radzi, who was scheduled to call a press conference at the KLIA at 4pm failed to show up. Osman Mohd Jailu, whose PC was to be at Shah Alam, also did not appear. Both sent representatives who say the two assemblymen had been on medical leave. The drama continues...


The plot in Perak is becoming more dramatic. Perak MB Mohammad Nizar was granted an audience with the Sultan at Istana Kinta this morning but left 25 minutes later without speaking to the media. Check updates at Star Online here.

The talk is that Umno leaders are also seeking an audience. The likelihood is that the two state exco members - Jamaluddin Mat Radzi and Osman Mohd Jailu - would be announcing this evening that they have decided to part ways with PKR but would remained as state assemblymen.

It is almost certain they would declare themselves to be independents. They are certain to argue that the undated resignation letters would have little impact as new letters to supercede these letters would have been filed. In any case, Malaysia does not have anti-hopping laws and the freedom of association is guaranteed under the federal constitution.

Go and asked Joseph Pairin whose PBS state assemblymen defected to BN and he lost the state government. Anwar Ibrahim is probably well versed too. There are enough court precedents to favour the duo. In the end, if the BN has the numbers, the Perak state government under Pakatan could collapse and there would be no fresh state elections. There is the question of law and also the Sultan needs to give his consent. At this point, the scenario is murky with merely plenty of rumours and speculations. But the story of the Perak drama is simple - it's about selfish political ambitions and party squabbles in the PKR, DAP and Umno.