The Pakatan Harapan conundrum

We all knew the no-confidence motion wouldn’t go through, and we even knew it wouldn't pass.

This started off with DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang, on September 26, saying that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had in fact “locked up” the support of his party’s warlords to the point of making the exercise futile.

Similarly, PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli also said that there was an internal split within his own party between those who want Najib out and those who wish for the PM to stay where he is for the political benefit of the next general election which must take place by 2018.

Meanwhile, all the opposition parties, and PAS itself, have no confidence in the no-confidence motion to oust Najib, especially with the largest Islamic party in the country still sore with the fledgling Parti Amanah Negara, which was recently set up by its dissenters.

So, why was there an uproar when Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin said today that the motion of no-confidence would not be tabled during the current sitting in Parliament?

After all, weren’t the opposition lawmakers also so keen to undo Najib that even if the no-confidence motion was rejected, they could just vote down his budget? This idea, was brought forward by the Demi Malaysia movement.

But of course, it would mean that the Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmakers would have to disobey their whip, and only one of them has actually done this so far to the point of resigning his post as the BN Backbencher Club president at the time.

Since then, even when lawmakers raised objections against the bills brought up in the Dewan Rakyat, they have continually voted to pass such laws.

One such case took place during Pak Lah’s time, in which objections were raised against the Islamic Family Law bill in 2006.

While women lawmakers raised their objections in the Dewan Rakyat then, they still voted it through.

With all this in mind – the DAP saying no crossovers from BN, PKR split between themselves and even PAS not committing to anything – why still have a no-confidence vote put forward?

It is clear that the opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan would have had no chance of winning the vote, particularly as mentioned above in their own words? So why?

Because they have run out of things to say, basically.

They cannot attack the highway tariff rises because they are complicit in even increasing more highways in the Klang Valley with three more highways coming in – the EKVE, the SUKE and the DASH.

They cannot attack the rising cost of living because, well, the Selangor MB himself is thinking about revisiting the free water programme for those living in the state. In fact, they have raised the water tariff for those living in Penang just last March.

And you may have to think about this a bit, but nobody openly bashed the 11th Malaysia Plan from the opposition’s side.

While we ponder on whether Pakatan truly has nothing new to capitalise on in terms of issue, we must also ask the DAP, PKR and Amanah a very simple question; is infighting getting in the way of this newly-wed threesome?

It is a valid question because the cracks are clearly showing.

Within PKR, there are those who still wish to get into the good books of PAS. This is because, stances be damned, to win an election requires numbers. This has even led to rumours of Rafizi’s removal from his post.

At the same time, the claws are out for DAP’s Tony Pua from PKR members led by a supposedly “famous” politician within their ranks.

Meanwhile, the newest party in Malaysia, Amanah, is still struggling to find its niche voter base. To replace PAS, which is no longer part of the coalition, Pakatan would need a party which can cater to the rural Malay heartland.

Unfortunately, Amanah themselves have said they would be able to gain stellar support in both Johor and Selangor, based on research conducted by their Ilham Institute.

This being said, it appears that Amanah would politically be contending against PKR itself for urban Malay majority seats, while leaving rural seats abandoned come the next general election.

Will this lead to yet another snafu as 2013 where three-way battles between Umno, PAS and PKR happened, only this time it would be four-corner battles between Umno, PAS, Amanah and PKR – all vying for the same seat?

Chances are, it could happen.

But all these don't matter much, because it has been a week since the new Pakatan opened the doors to the rest of political Malaysia, and thus far the snubbed parties are not interested.

As such, it is no longer a question of how unpopular Najib is, but a question of is there a viable alternative. Right now, the answer is still a no.

But there are still two years to go. – October 21, 2015.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.