Our DPM Believes UMNO, BN Leaders Out To Topple The Govt. But He'll "Not Let This Happen"
It's another matter that in the history of Malaysia, the country has never seen any motion of 'no confidence' passed against the Prime Minister.
By Sadho Ram — 19 Aug 2015, 12:02 PM
Ahmad Zahid: Mystery plotter called off date with Najib
The Umno leader behind the plot to topple the government had cancelled Sunday's meeting with Datuk Seri Najib Razak, said Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, just two days after he announced the plotter had repented. The deputy prime minister today said that while he did not know when the meeting will be rescheduled, he would make sure it would take place.
"The meeting was cancelled on the request of the individual. No reason was given but the person was probably informed of the huge media presence at the Prime Minister's residence," Dr Ahmad Zahid said.
themalaysianinsider.com
But while Zahid was confident that the Umno man in question was leading the plot to overthrow the government, he said no arrests could be made yet.
"A police report has already been lodged. The process is that when the report is made, investigations will be carried out.”
He added that he had already submitted the information he had on the plot, but refused to reveal the man's identity, saying it would jeopardise investigations.
16 AUG: Now, DPM wants mystery UMNO leader to deny plot to topple the government
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has challenged the Umno leader he claimed was planning to "topple the government", to deny it publicly.
"If he has guts, this person must deny it through the press," said Ahmad Zahid.
Speaking at the Klang Umno division annual general meeting today, Ahmad Zahid said that the plot and its plotter was real.
15 AUG: Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who recently became the Deputy Prime Minister after PM Najib reshuffled his Cabinet to sabotage the growing dissent against himself over his alleged involvement in the ongoing 1MDB scandal, believes that a "certain leader" from UMNO, the governing party, is plotting to topple the current government...
...and, while the DPM does not "want to reveal it," he can "smell it" and that he "got to know there's a conspiracy against the government that was elected through a democratic process".
He said that there is an individual who is trying to get a statutory declaration (SD) from both sides of the political divide in a bid to topple the Government.
Zahid, who is also the Home Minister, said so during his speech at the Ampang UMNO division yearly meeting on Saturday, 15 August.
"There are efforts to backstab the government. It is taking place actively now," Zahid said. As per the Straits Times, he said that he had received information from a very reliable source that there were lawyers preparing to present a 7-page yellow-paper memorandum with the SD to prove they had the support of the majority.
"The person is an Umno and Barisan Nasional leader who was recently released and is now working with 87 opposition parliamentarians to work against the government,'' he said.
"I am not going to mention names, but it will be exposed and as Home Minister, I am not going to let it be," he said at the Ampang division meeting here.
"They cannot wait until the next general election and they are trying to use the back door. "I am not going to let this be," he added.
He therefore, advised the Ampang UMNO division delegates not to betray each other. Zahid also believed that the attempt will not be supported by the Barisan Nasioanal MPs.
It should be noted that prior to the 1MDB allegation against Prime Minister Najib surfaced in the WSJ and Sarawak Report exposes, PAS had in April proposed a vote of no confidence against him over 1MDB's debts and alleged financial mismanagement...
...and, just moments before Najib announced his Cabinet reshuffle on 28 July, lawmakers from PKR, DAP and GHB had urged all parliamentarians including those from BN, to hold a vote of no confidence against Najib.
They said that now was the most critical time to remove Najib and allow a "transition government" to take over Putrajaya. GHB chairman Mohamad Sabu said that the move should be made to save the country's future.
"Najib's stubbornness to continue to remain in power will drag the country in uncertainty as long as it was not quickly resolved," he said.
However, Abdul Hadi Awang, President of PAS, then warned PAS lawmakers to not support any motion of no confidence against Najib, if it is tabled in the Dewan Rakyat to force his resignation.
The PAS President said that parliamentarians had to obey this if they did not want any stern action taken against them as PAS would only make changes through "healthy" ways.
"PAS will not join in the agenda to make political changes through unhealthy ways as that will only cause havoc in the country. We want change, but we will do it in a healthy way, that is through the general election. The change in the country's leadership, as proposed by the New Hope Movement (GHB), can send the nation into havoc and sacrifice the people's future," he was quoted as saying in Berita Harian.
So, what really happens in a vote of no confidence?
A motion of no confidence, or a vote of no confidence, is a feature of the Westminster system of government that Malaysia is using. The concept was invented in (West) Germany but is today also used in other nations, such as Belgium, Spain, Hungary, Slovenia and Lesotho.
While the procedure surrounding a vote of no confidence in Malaysia is not entirely clear, it basically means the executive, in this case, the Prime Minister, is required to retain the confidence of the majority of the Members of Parliament.
In Malaysia, it must be at least 112 of the 222 Members of Parliament.
However, in the event of the Prime Minister failing to do so, and once a vote of no confidence against is passed with a simple majority, the Prime Minister either resigns or he seeks the consent of the His Majesty the Agong to dissolve Parliament, and a general election will be held.
Although, in the history of Malaysian politics, the country has never seen any motion of 'no confidence' passed against the Prime Minister so far.
While it's easier to pass a vote of no confidence when it is a minority government, when the government has a clear majority, like in Malaysia, the ruling coalition will have to break ranks and work with the opposition for the vote to be passed.
And political observers say a vote of no confidence is unlikely to take place as BN leaders, under no circumstance, will want to risk losing the government. Instead, they will simply rally behind another PM candidate, the observers say.