KOTA KINABALU – There are obvious attempts by certain quarters to sever the political cooperation between Warisan and PKR after MPs from the former failed to take part in the Budget 2021 vote in Parliament, said political analyst Lee Kuok Tiung.
Lee, who is from Universiti Malaysia Sabah, said skirmishes had erupted between the two parties’ followers in Sabah, but had not affected their common political stands yet.
“They should stop politicking and focus purely on the interest of the people during this budget sitting,” said Lee, adding that he believed some quarters in Pakatan Harapan wanted Warisan to be made a scapegoat over the eventual passing of the budget.
He said certain quarters were trying to use the situation to create tension between PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the Warisan leaders.
Certain PKR politicians, Lee said, were manipulating the whole incident so the national party wages war against Warisan.
He said, however, that the intensifying battle of words between parties’ leaders whether in the mass or social media did not reflect the stands of their presidents.
“The followers need to be clear that Warisan’s action to abstain from voting on the budget should not be seen as an attack on PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim,” Lee said in an interview with The Vibes.
“Elected MPs are voted in to ensure the demands of their own people are met, and not for political gains.”
Last week, eight Warisan MPs did not turn up for the budget vote.
Party whip Datuk Rosman Isli (Warisan-Labuan) later explained that their absence was to send a signal to Anwar that a new opposition leader was desired.
The Warisan MPs were not happy with Anwar’s last-minute instruction to party allies to abstain from supporting the motion for bloc voting for the budget.
The incident saw the MPs being blamed for the opposition’s failure to stand as a team in Parliament.
According to sources, the abstention was part of a power play to oust Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Following Rosman’s explanation, PKR launched an offensive against Warisan when its information chief Fahmi Fadzil alleged that the Warisan MPs’ action could be a sign that they were now working with the Perikatan Nasional government.
A war of words erupted with Sabah PKR Youth chief Raymond Ahuar defending Anwar and declaring that he will not allow any political leader to derail the goal for him to become prime minister.
Warisan Youth chief Jo-Anna Sue Henley Rampas then rubbished claims that her party was in cahoots with Bersatu to ensure Muhyiddin remains as prime minister.
Sabah PKR reacted by demanding that Jo-Anna apologise for her remarks.
Lee said party followers should be reminded that the elected MPs acted as they did not for political gain, but because they wanted to draw attention to their views.
He said that whether they supported the budget or not should be decided based purely on the interest of the people.
“It is not about whether Warisan is being PH-friendly or an ally.
“When Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad failed to secure a chance to move for a bloc vote to defeat the passing of Budget 2021, why didn’t PKR supporters say they (Warisan MPs) were against Mahathir?” – The Vibes, December 10, 2020
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