The unlikely alliance


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As a matter of fact, the PM’s position will not be at stake even if the Citizens’ Declaration has succeeded in getting one million people to sign. The most critical factor is the stand and attitude of Umno leaders.

(Sin Chew Daily) – It is not at all surprising to see former foes coming together to form an alliance against PM Najib as there are no eternal foes in politics, just interests. It comes as a refreshing eye-opener in this country that for the first time ever, old political rivals have sat down together and held hands for some specific cause.

Former prime minister Tun Mahathir launched the Citizens’ Declaration with opposition leaders and NGOs days ago to exert pressure on the prime minister to step down. The “star-studded”line-up at last Friday’s press conference managed to create some waves and lure eyeballs among the public, but it is yet to be seen whether the momentum built on that day could snowball into a determined force to take Najib out of office.

Many critics are of the opinion that the success rate of the anti-Najib alliance is low, and even foreign media believe Najib could survive the move to topple him.

As a matter of fact, the PM’s position will not be at stake even if the Citizens’ Declaration has succeeded in getting one million people to sign. The most critical factor is the stand and attitude of Umno leaders. From the show of unity in last year’s Umno assembly to the hushed reactions following the removal of Muhyiddin and Mukhriz, it is obvious that Najib is in firm control of the party.

But from the perspective of political maneuver, the main purpose of the anti-Najib alliance or the Citizens’ Declaration is not just to bring down Najib, but to build up the momentum to exert pressure on the government.

Judging from the current state of affairs, it appears that there is no way the anti-Najib alliance will ever succeed in bringing down Najib. However, it Mahathir can sustain or even leverage on this force, given the emergence of specific favorable developments, such as a thumping defeat on the part of BN or Umno in the next general elections, it may work.

The forced resignation of PM Abdullah was not effectuated overnight but over some time as the opposition forces within the party gathered steam. Today, Mahathir is doing the same thing but with a different target and new allies.

From here we can see that the Mahathir-Najib feud is not going to end anytime soon. The anti-Najib alliance is only a part of his strategy.

Mahathir’s pressing task now is to keep the momentum going, and this is by no means a simple one as it entails highly complicated political feuds as well as differing political stands and ideologies.

While politicians can lay down their past grudges for a common cause, what about their supporters? Will they grow skeptical or repulsive to this unlikely union? This is one tough issue the anti-Najib alliance needs to confront. Mishandling of this could lead to a premature death of the alliance before the PM’s position is weakened in the slightest.

 



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