PARTI Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s (PPBM) decision to admit seven more former Umno MPs into the party has set tongues wagging.
Political analysts said PPBM should not have resorted to a shortcut to boost Malay support for Pakatan Harapan (PH), Oriental Daily News reported today.
It is too selfish for PPBM to do that, said head of Centre for Asian Studies at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Assoc Prof Dr Faisal S. Hazis.
He told the vernacular daily it was unfortunate that PPBM had accepted former Umno MPs.
He said the PPBM leaders seemed to have forgotten that it was with the help of other PH component parties that they secured their victories in the 14th general election.
On Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s remarks on Tuesday, that the seven former Umno MPs were vetted before their applications were approved and that all of them would not be given party posts, Faisal stressed that Mahathir had said more than once after GE14 that Umno MPs could choose to quit their party but they would not be accepted into PPBM.
“But now? Does it means that in future these former Umno MPs could take up posts in PPBM after another round of vetting?” he asked.
He said PPBM’s latest move is not fair to PH candidates who lost to these defectors in GE14.
There could be a hidden agenda, otherwise the seven could not have joined PPBM so easily, he opined.
He said PPBM has plenty of time to win Malay support and need not resort to this “shortcut”.
Political analyst Tang Ah Chai believed Mahathir has accepted the seven former Umno MPs with the hope of strengthening the party and enhancing its position in PH soonest.
On the discontent voiced by PH component parties, Tang said it was difficult for them to ask for a review of PPBM’s decision at this stage.
It is also unlikely that they would want to rock the boat over the matter, given the present political scenario, he added.
