blogtunm.blogspot.com Tun M
1. Malaysians have been expecting Parliament to be dissolved so that election can be held. There were rumours about the dissolution of Parliament since 2015. But each time the Government failed to do so. If the Government was confident it would win, early election would give it a longer life. It must be because it was not fully confident that it kept on postponing the election.
2. The Government of Najib believed that cash is king. With cash i.e. with bribery it could win easily. But very quickly it dawned upon the leaders of the BN that money could not buy everything.
3. That was when Najib resorted to other ways to weaken the opposition. It decided to tamper with the electoral role in the 13th Election. It failed. The opposition garnered more popular votes than the Government.
4. Then it decided to change electoral boundaries so that rural constituencies have a lesser number of votes. The Government party needs only a few votes in the rural areas in order to win.
5. This time, it was convinced that the small rural constituencies populated largely by Malays would, as in the 13th Election, give the BN enough seats to form the Government. Such was its confidence that the rural Malays would always support UMNO that it saw no threat in registering Parti Pribumi Bersatu, set-up by ex-UMNO members. Najib did not think the new indigenous party would be big enough to challenge UMNO. Certainly, it would not be able to work together with the other opposition parties. It was unthinkable for the opposition to accept it as a coalition partner.
6. In this Najib was completely wrong. The new party was not only welcome to join a new opposition coalition but the parties actually accepted the PPBM Chairman as Chairman of the coalition and subsequently as its candidate for Prime Ministership.
7. This turn of events sent tremors to the BN and UMNO leaders. They felt a need to deregister PPBM, even to stop it from contesting in the 14th elections.
8. They saw an opportunity to do this when the new coalition applied for registration and the use of a new common symbol or logo.
9. And so, when the application for registration of the coalition was made to the Registrar of Societies, a new approach was adopted by the Registrar.
10. By simply not acknowledging or replying to the applications, the new coalition was left uncertain as to its fate. It could not conclude that it would not be registered but it could also not assume that it would be registered. Preparation for working together during the election could not be made. Registered, it could use a single symbol, a single flag and a single manifesto. If it is not registered, the four parties would have to retain their four flags and make separate preparations for the elections.
11. All enquiries directed at ROS were not acknowledged and no replies received. The coalition members were left in a limbo, uncertain whether eventually the coalition would be registered or not.
12. Attempts to get a reply failed. No acknowledgement or replies were received.
13. Then there came vague suggestion that registration would not be possible because DAP and PPBM had breached certain rules. But no written explanation was given by ROS as to these breaches. DAP which long ago was told that it had failed to carry out proper elections, resolved this problem by holding a new election. ROS then approved it.
14. But PPBM was not officially informed as to the breaches it had made. It could not be corrected to the satisfaction of ROS.
15. Election was approaching and time for preparing for election was getting shorter. Then, one day before the PM announced that parliament was to be dissolved, PPBM received notice that it had been temporarily dissolved for 30 days as from 5th of April the day the letter was sent by ROS.
16. Clearly there is collusion between ROS and Najib. It could not be coincidental. It must have been planned early as the 30 days PPBM is suspended or “bubar” coincides with the period of election.
17. Not only is PPBM not allowed to contest in the elections but during that period the party cannot display its identity through flags, posters or shirts. It cannot even display my pictures as its chairman. Only the pictures of the contestant can be displayed in each constituency.
18. The withdrawal of the registration of PPBM means no registration of Pakatan Harapan. So Pakatan Harapan, the proposed coalition of four opposition parties, would also be illegal.
19. This means that Najib’s Government is depriving the opposition and majority of the citizens of Malaysia from participating in the 14th General Election. BN will win all seats uncontested. This is a gross abuse of the principles of democracy. Any election in which opposition candidates are not allowed to contest cannot be regarded as valid. The winning party cannot be allowed to set up a Government.
20. The result would be a stalemate.
21. The only solution is to hold a new election immediately in which everyone wishing to contest would be allowed to contest.
