No guarantee Speaker will allow a no-confidence motion, says PAS man

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says the opposition lacks the numbers to successfully push through a no-confidence motion against him. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: There is no guarantee that Dewan Rakyat Speaker Johari Abdul will allow a no-confidence motion to be tabled against Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, says an opposition leader.

PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari said motions that Perikatan Nasional (PN) MPs wanted to table previously, including one seeking an explanation on deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s conditional discharge, were rejected “outright”.

“So, there is no guarantee a no-confidence motion will be accepted and voted upon,” the Pasir Mas MP told FMT.

He was commenting on Anwar’s statement yesterday that PN had yet to file a no-confidence motion against him despite multiple claims that the unity government was on the verge of collapse.

Anwar also said PN lacked the numbers for a no-confidence motion to be successful in the Dewan Rakyat.

This follows an earlier statement by the prime minister in July last year that he had no qualms if the opposition wanted to table such a motion against him, adding that he would even shorten the notice period.

On Dec 19, 2022, one month after the 15th general election (GE15), a motion of confidence was tabled by deputy prime minister Fadillah Yusof in the Dewan Rakyat.

It was passed through a voice vote while the opposition did not call for a bloc vote.

On Wednesday, Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Karim, from PKR, challenged the opposition to file a no-confidence motion if it wished to test Anwar’s validity as the prime minister.

Meanwhile, UiTM’s Noor Nirwandy Mat Noordin said both the government and the opposition must put an end to talk about attempts to topple the government.

“Such rhetoric would only erode the public’s faith in the country’s political system,” he said.

Kartini Aboo of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) agreed. He said the political tug-of-war involving claims of a “Dubai Move” was detrimental to the country.

The “Dubai Move” refers to alleged talks in the United Arab Emirates between certain opposition leaders and government representatives to topple the unity government.