New rules: Persuading an entire party to turn its back on an ally is much harder than convincing an individual to do the same, says Dr Mazlan Ali. — AZLINA ABDULLAH/The Star
PETALING JAYA: If there is a Sheraton 2.0 to unseat a ruling government, it will be more difficult to pull off than the first one in 2020, owing to the Anti-Hopping Law which went into effect early last year, said analysts.
They explained that an opposition party seeking to topple the unity government must be able to convince any parties loyal to the government to switch sides.
To persuade an entire party to turn its back on an ally is much harder than it is to convince individual Members of Parliament to do the same, said political scientist Dr Mazlan Ali from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
With the anti-hopping law, it is highly risky for an individual MP from a pro-government party to switch sides and face a by-election, he said.
“In the 14th General Election, these seats were won by Barisan Nasional, GPS or GRS in a three-cornered contest.
“If a by-election is held now, an MP who stands on a Perikatan Nasional ticket will have to face Barisan and Pakatan Harapan. The chances of losing your seat are high,” said Mazlan.
By making it extremely costly for individual MPs to switch sides, the Anti-Hopping Law has given the ruling government more stability, he added.
Another academician, Professor Wong Chin Huat, agrees, saying individual MPs who switched sides without their party’s permission can be ejected from the party. Under the anti-hopping law, they will have to vacate their parliamentary seats.
Recently, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim acknowledged that there was a conspiracy to topple the unity government.
However, leaders from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), who are part of the Perikatan coalition, have denied that they were behind the latest conspiracy.
Wong said if Perikatan wanted to unseat Anwar’s administration, they would need at least 38 parliamentarians to abandon the unity government.
“If the chance of success is so slim, why would any party in Perikatan stick its neck out for something that is unlikely to succeed?” said Wong, of Sunway University.
The government gets its support from Anwar’s Pakatan coalition, which has 82 seats, Barisan’s 30 seats, GPS (23), GRS (6), Parti Warisan (3), two Sabah independents, and one MP each from Parti Bangsa Malaysia and Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat.
Barisan chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and senior GPS leader Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, who are also Deputy Prime Ministers, have in recent weeks said their coalitions still support Anwar’s administration.
Universiti Sains Malaysia professor of political sociology Sivamurugan Pandian said it was unwise for the opposition to trigger by-elections given the current challenges faced by the country.
“We are facing various challenges, and the personalities involved wouldn’t want to be blamed for putting personal interests above the nation,” said Sivamurugan.He added that Perikatan may be emboldened to force by-elections if they did well in state elections this year, but “this does not mean a coup should take place.”
