KUALA LUMPUR – The politicking and squabbling over prime ministership among Pakatan Harapan (PH) and its allies even after losing federal power is disappointing and should stop immediately, said Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
In one of his most scathing criticisms of the former government that he was a part of, the now independent lawmaker said much of the attention in the opposition coalition has been about who should take the top post.
He added that the pact should instead consolidate its current base, while also focusing on winning back the trust and mandate of the people in the coming general election.
“The people already saw that intense politicking between the top two leaders when we were in government, and now even when we have lost power, we are still fighting about who should become the prime minister,” he said in an interview with BFM radio station today.
“In reality, we should focus on being a team. Rather than talking about the prime ministership, focus on who are the 20 or so leaders that the opposition can offer to lead.
“Focusing on the thorniest issue about who should be the prime minister should come at the end,” he said.
During Pakatan Harapan’s 22 months in power, supporters of former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim were at loggerheads over the former’s plan to hand over the reins.
Many critics have argued it was among the factors that contributed to the collapse of the PH administration.
Syed Saddiq said parties should decide for themselves who should be the prime minister based on policies they stand for, hopes that they bring, and the support they can provide.
On his biggest regret when he was in cabinet, the former youth and sports minister said it was not being able to get Dr Mahathir, Anwar and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to be on the same page.
“If that was resolved, a lot of things wouldn’t have happened. It’s not to say that (the collapse of PH) was only because of those three leaders, but they definitely played a very big role in allowing the split to take place.
“I really tried during that one week (of political turmoil) to get everyone together, but it failed in the end. And that is my regret,” said Syed Saddiq.
Moving forward, he said politics should no longer be personality-based, instead they should be based on issues, ideas and policies.
This way, he added, even if there is infighting among leaders, the parties, members and supporters will remain intact. – The Vibes, March 11, 2021
