GEORGE TOWN: The mass exodus of Sabah Umno leaders has raised eyebrows and prompted differing views from members of the Penang Pakatan Harapan chapter.
Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh is strongly against such moves saying these are merely actions engineered to gain political mileage.
Ramkarpal believes it is within their rights for lawmakers to quit their parties and be independent, but party hopping can have a negative impact on the political landscape.
“They can quit the party but they should wait until the next general election and receive a fresh mandate from the voters. This is the right thing to do,“ he stressed.
Ramkarpal said if this situation is not controlled, the opposition will be ineffective in ensuring checks and balances in the government.
He added he was unsure whether the Pakatan Harapan presidential council would discuss this matter in its next meeting.
Meanwhile, PKR’s Datuk Mansor Othman concurred with his DAP counterpart saying it was a very unfortunate this is happening and that something needs to be done to prevent it from escalating.
Mansor who is also the Nibong Tebal MP says party-hopping law was needed to prevent crossovers from happening.
However, state Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) chairman Datuk Marzukhi Yahaya begs to differ saying that every party members have a right to quit.
No matter what transpires, he says these Umno members will be screened thoroughly and will remain independent for a certain period of time before they are allowed to join Pakatan.
Sabah Umno has been hit by a tsunami after a mass exodus of leaders from the party with state liaison committee chairman Hajiji Mohd Noor leading the way.
Those leaving the party were four MPs, two senators, nine assemblymen and bulk of the party’s state liaison committee
The four MPs who left the party are Kudat MP Datuk Abd Rahim Bakri, Beaufort MP Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun, Libaran MP Datuk Zakaria Mohd Edris and Beluran MP Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee.
They were joined by two senators, Penampang Umno chief Datuk John Ambrose and Pensiangan Umno Datuk chief Ghani Yassin and nine out the 10 Assemblymen.
Only Kinabatangan MP Datuk Bung Moktar Radin and former chief minister and Sungai Sibuga assemblyman Tan Sri Musa Aman remain as the party’s elected representatives.
