Najib, a liability for UMNO?

'Najib is now on shaky ground as Muhyiddin plots again'

(Harakah Daily) - Following the Bersih fiasco, Najib Razak’s position as prime minister and UMNO president is on shaky ground, according to two PAS leaders.

They pointed out that several contradictory statements made by his administration gave the strongest signal that Najib was increasingly seen as a liability for UMNO and Barisan Nasional.

“Most significant is how Najib is left on his own to absorb all the negative impact following his administration’s mishandling of Bersih 2.0,” said Kubang Kerian member of parliament Salahuddin Ayub (left).

Describing Najib's performance in the run-up and aftermath of the massive July 9 rally by Bersih as "most unfortunate", the PAS vice president said the prime minister could have made things easier for himself if he had only "taken the simple way out" by agreeing to Bersih's eight demands on electoral reforms.

“He could have easily solved the matter because Bersih 2.0’s demands are only eight, not eight hundred or eight thousand,” added Salahuddin.

Deliberate mishandling

Salahuddin said it would not come as a surprise if it was true that the "mishandling" of the Bersih rally was a deliberate act by UMNO to accelerate Najib's ouster.

“This is aggravated by the attitude of his wife (Rosmah Mansor), a far cry from the wives of the previous prime ministers," said Salahuddin, adding that the recent revelation about a RM24 million diamond ring imported into the country by Rosmah had clearly left many within UMNO's ranks disappointed. Rosmah last week refused to entertain questions over the report, dismissing it as slander.

According to Salahuddin, the call for Najib's ouster could emanate from none other than his own deputy, Muhyiddin Yasin (pic, top right, with Najib).

"If Muhyiddin had once told (former prime minister) Pak Lah to step down as prime minister during the UMNO Supreme Council meeting, it is possible that he will do it again now against Najib,” he said.

He said worried about such a prospect, Najib was now forced to go on a state by state tour.

'Najib in Mahathir 2003's situation'

Kuala Selangor MP Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, writing in The Malaysian Insider, described Najib as the biggest liability to his own party in the coming 13th general election, and compared him to Dr Mahathir Mohamad's situation in 2003.

“History will repeat. Tun (Mahathir) was forcefully sidelined by UMNO to save the Malay party, because he had become the biggest liability... The strategy proved to work. Pak Lah won big in the 11th general election in April 2004, in fact it was the biggest victory in UMNO’s history,” wrote the PAS central committee member.

Dzulkefly (right) said UMNO was currenly at its weakest point and this could prompt an alliance among Mahathir, Muhyiddin and Mahathir’s son Mukhriz Mahathir, into doing something 'drastic'.

“Will Muhyiddin, Mukhriz and Mahathir plot to bring down Najib to ensure that UMNO continues to hold Federal power? Will this 3-M faction gain the support of the Chinese and Indians whom Najib had tried to win over?" he asked.

Dzulkefly continued to pose several other questions.

"Can UMNO rule with the support of Malays who are now divided? Will they be supported by Amanah launched by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah?" he asked, referring to the newly-launched movement by UMNO's Gua Musang MP which among others sought to encourage greater unity among races.