PERLIS Menteri Besar Abu Bakar Hamzah has firmly denied speculation that he is planning to defect from Bersatu, insisting he remains a loyal party member and continues to serve as the party's Perlis chairman.
Dismissing claims circulating on social media, Abu Bakar said confusion had arisen after he resigned from Bersatu's Supreme Leadership Council (MPT), stressing that the move did not amount to leaving the party.
"Netizens did not read the full story. I only resigned from my position as a member of Bersatu's Supreme Leadership Council, which I won in 2024. I did not leave the party.
"I remain the Chairman of Bersatu Perlis, subject to the consent of the party president. The assemblymen for Pauh, Titi Tinggi and Sena, as well as the Member of Parliament for Kangar, also remain members of Bersatu," he said.
He was responding to calls on social media urging the dissolution of the Perlis State Legislative Assembly following misunderstandings over his political status.
Abu Bakar also dismissed suggestions that his resignation from the party's central leadership, together with Sena assemblywoman Marzita Mansor, was linked to the upcoming state election or any internal leadership dispute within Bersatu.
Instead, he said the decision was made to allow him to focus fully on administering the Perlis state government and reorganising the party's Kangar division following the departure of several committee members who had expressed their intention to leave the party.
Commenting on the resignation of Senator Azahar Hassan from Bersatu, Abu Bakar described it as a personal decision made without consultation with the party's state leadership.
He added that there had been no indication that branch-level members in Perlis intended to follow Azahar's decision to leave the party.
Abu Bakar further stressed that concerns over a change of government or the dissolution of the Perlis State Legislative Assembly were unfounded, noting that all state assembly members and Members of Parliament are bound by Malaysia's Anti-Party Hopping Act. - July 11, 2026
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