Four Bersatu MPs request for new seating arrangement

KUALA LUMPUR: The four Bersatu MPs who pledged support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and have requested for their sitting arrangement in the Dewan Rakyat to be changed will, however, remain as Perikatan Nasional lawmakers for now.

Confirming that he has received a written notice, Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul said he will make a decision in the near future, possibly after the Deepavali break.

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He said the anti-hopping law has clearly spelt out how a seat would be lost.

“They pledged support. They did not cross (to the government bloc). That does not mean anything. Some support quietly and some do it openly,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

“The law does not restrict anyone from pledging support. It does not mean a loss of seat (for Perikatan Nasional).

“Some have requested to change their seating position because they were not comfortable sitting with their old friend. That is my prerogative. I can make some changes.”

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However, he did not reveal where the four MPs had requested to move.

“It is not decided where they will be relocated,” he said when asked if they had requested to be moved to the government backbench.

Johari said he has yet to meet the four MPs.

“I will contact them and accommodate them like I accommodated Muar (Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman),” he said.

Johari added that it does not affect the “stability” of the Dewan Rakyat as it is not a case of party hopping.

“This could just be a purely political or non-political expression. I do not know. They have their rights who they want to support,” he said.

Recently, Bersatu’s Kuala Kangsar MP Datuk Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid and Labuan MP Datuk Dr Suhaili Abdul Rahman declared support for Anwar, saying that they did so to gain extra allocations for their constituencies.

Bersatu secretary-general Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin later announced that Suhaili and Iskandar had been suspended from the party for six and four years, respectively, by the party’s disciplinary board.

On Nov 7, Gua Musang MP Mohd Azizi Abu Naim became the third Bersatu MP to declare support for Anwar’s leadership.

On Nov 8, Bersatu was struck by another similar incident where Jeli MP Zahari Kechik became the fourth Bersatu MP who pledged support for Anwar.

Observers are anticipating more Bersatu MPs to follow suit in pledging support for Anwar.