THE STRAITS TIMES – Following Barisan Nasional’s (BN) landslide win in the Johor state election, political analysts expect influential ranks within Umno – which leads the Barisan coalition – to demand that a general election be called soon.
They said the Umno general assembly, which begins tomorrow, would be a perfect platform for their rallying battle cry.
Professor Sivamurugan Pandian of Universiti Sains Malaysia expects the pressure to increase on Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to dissolve Parliament for an early general election.
“He may have an uphill task in staving off calls for a general election, especially if they come from the Umno grassroots at the party’s general assembly.
“There will be prior indication if this will happen, as the Umno supreme council will meet first to set the agenda for the general assembly,” he said on Sunday.
Professor Sivamurugan said that although Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri held the post of prime minister, as Umno vice-president, he sat below party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and deputy president Mohamad Hasan.
“It would be different if Ismail Sabri was Umno president as he would then be able to have the final word on the matter,” he said.
Zahid and Datuk Seri Mohamad had previously called for an early general election but subsequently agreed not to push for it because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Professor Sivamurugan said Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s dismal showing in the Melaka and Johor elections was also a factor in the push for an early general election.
On the memorandum of understanding inked last September with Pakatan Harapan (PH) for, among other things, Parliament not to be dissolved until July 31, 2022, he said calls for a snap election would not be entirely against the agreement. “Parliament could be dissolved in May or slightly later as they will still have 60 days to call for a general election.
“This would put the timeframe for the general election to be after Hari Raya Aidifitri, with a window of opportunity coming during the school holidays. It is all about timing in politics,” he said.
BN won a super majority of 40 seats out of 56 contested in Johor, with PH winning 13 and Perikatan Nasional taking just three seats.
