ANALYSTS: NO NEED TO SUSPEND BN, PARTIES SHOULD PUT HOUSE IN ORDER
KUALA LUMPUR: There is no need for Barisan Nasional to be temporarily suspended if it wants to form partnerships with political parties from outside of the coalition.
Instead, the onus should be on BN to put its house in order after its defeat in the 14th General Election (GE14).
Universiti Sains Malaysia political analyst Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said BN should be re-assessing its role to chart its future in being an effective opposition.
He said this could be done only if BN took stock of what it did wrong, and address its shrinking support base, which was made worse when a large number of its elected representatives at the federal-level abandoned the coalition after GE14.
“The coalition must ask itself this: between May 9 till today, has BN looked at the real issue of its downfall? Has it found the remedies to the decrease in its support? BN can still exist, but it must look at new methods to consolidate the coalition to regain the trust of the people.
“The number of BN elected representatives in Parliament is down to 54 from the previous 79. That is why the BN is weak now,” Sivamurugan told the New Straits Times.
He was referring to the number of BN elected representatives in the Dewan Rakyat, which was further reduced from 79 to 54 following the departure of Sarawak BN elected representatives who left the coalition to form Gabungan Parti Sarawak in June.
This occurred amid the departure of other BN component parties, which reduced the 13 component parties in the coalition to only three.
He said if it were true that BN wanted to work with parties outside of its coalition, it could do so within the BN framework.
“They must honour the gentlemen’s agreement that exists between all three parties. They should not disband because they lost in the polls. Even if the three parties struggle to survive, they must test new formulas and work together to chart BN’s future.
“It must remember that it’s not about the coalition’s top leaders, but it is about its supporters who continue to uphold its beliefs.”
Yesterday, an online portal quoted Umno secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa as saying that BN should be temporarily suspended to allow it to form partnerships with parties outside of the coalition.
Annuar denied it, and described the news as unethical as he felt that the reporter should have verified the matter with him first.
He said he had been interviewed by the portal with regard to MCA’s decision to use its logo in the Balakong by-election, and that it was not related to the issue of BN being suspended.
Sivamurugan said observers saw BN struggling with its role as an opposition, but this should not get in the way of it from moving on for its betterment.
“Some BN members of parliament can play that role better than others. Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin is among them. This is due to his previous role as a minister. But as a collective, I can’t see what BN stands for now.”
Meanwhile, Universiti Utara Malaysia political lecturer Professor Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani said BN’s three-party composition should not be an excuse for it to be disbanded.
“The three component parties must find ways to strengthen the BN coalition.”