YOURSAY | Can Zahid do whatever he likes?

YOURSAY | 'It looks like a give-and-take situation has happened.'

COMMENT | Undermining PM with the stroke of a pen

Fair Play: Why do we think Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim appointed BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as deputy prime minister and rural and regional development minister?

Why did Anwar send Zahid to the Malay heartland states to prepare for the floods and to provide the necessary financial assistance for those affected?

Zahid (above), and especially Anwar, needs to connect with the Malay heartland states of Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan, and Terengganu to counter the green wave in the 16th general election.

The reappointment of former Machang MP Ahmad Jazlan Yaakub as Felcra chairperson is necessary for Zahid to break the iron-clad grip of the Malay heartland states by PAS.

Without the support of the majority of the Malays for Umno/Pakatan Harapan, Anwar cannot be said to represent all Malaysians.

Trust Anwar. As a politician, he is a more astute and visionary Malay politician than anyone else at this crucial stage of Malaysia’s journey towards economic prosperity and unity.

RedMinnow6504: It looks like a give-and-take situation has happened. It’s obviously a tough job for Anwar as this will give a wrong perception and bad image.

Everybody will definitely shoot at him. This is without us knowing whether the appointment of Jazlan was simply an appointment made wantonly and blindly ignoring Anwar and the cabinet’s decision to get rid of political appointees, or was due to another good reason behind it.

Whatever it is, Zahid’s answer to Jazlan’s appointment was confusing. A better explanation is necessary to avoid another bashing point towards this new government.

There are a lot of people who are hoping and praying that this new government will do much better than the previous government.

We don’t want to see too many silly mistakes, stupid moves, and flip-flop decisions. Any changes and viral issues must be properly and clearly explained so that everybody will understand.

BOBBYO: Would Zahid make such a move without Anwar’s consent? It would not be possible. Zahid needs all the support he can get in Umno to win the post of president of Umno. Jazlan could be a piece that he needs to move in the game of chess to retain his position.

Secondly, we all seem to think that we can make better decisions than Anwar at deciding what to do. The coalition is still new. Don’t we all want the overall situation in this nation to improve?

The economy, education, the relationship between the people, prices of basic commodities being reduced, cost of living manageable, investors again having confidence in our nation, healthcare being easily available, billions saved from being wasted, our currency regaining its value, corruption brought under control.

Aren’t improvements in these many sectors more important?

In the end, it is the results that matter. Remember Harapan does not have the magical figure of 112 to do as it wants. So, there will be compromises made on certain issues and arrangements.

Yet it is still better for the nation than letting Perikatan Nasional (PN) be in charge, with PAS calling the shots. We can picture the situation if they are given the power.

Guglu: Zahid’s brazen unilateral act, going against the cabinet’s decision, is proof that the multi-coalition government is a sham. Other MPs have to follow orders, yet Zahid could do whatever he likes.

It is not only Anwar, the whole cabinet now looks like fools. And yet there are Malaysians who believe this is the government that can save Malaysia. Pity them.

Rest assured, the stupidity of the Harapan-led government and the quiet confidence of PN, will turn Malaysia green, God Willing.

Just a Malaysian: Zahid is fighting for his political survival. He has to flex his muscles before the Umno Annual General Meeting (AGM). Whether Anwar was consulted or not is another issue, but it did expose early cracks in this government.

DAP is the most principled party. After agreeing to support Anwar and the government, they put their head to the grind and work.

Many commenters would attack DAP for keeping silent. They forgot that Malaysian politics has become all noise and no action. It’s time to put our heads together to rebuild this broken nation rather than talk, talk, talk.

Appum: If Jazlan is so influential in the rural areas, Felcra areas, as some commenters said, how did this guy lose in the 15th general election? So this fact does not hold water.

Maybe in the Umno bloc, he may have some clout. But that is not the issue, he is a politician and appointing him to be a government agency head should be out as far as policy goes.

Perhaps to amend this mistake by Zahid, the most diplomatic way is to ask this chairperson to voluntarily resign.

Cogito Ergo Sum: Zahid may have made the appointment to appease his detractors in Umno. A show of force that he has some very big clout in the new government. It could also bolster his chances at the next party polls.

These manoeuvres may be behind the appointment of Jazlan. But Anwar is no fool. I am sure as prime minister, he would have extracted some quid pro quo from Zahid and Umno.

Harapan Baru: This is what comes with appointing a guy who has umpteen corruption charges as deputy prime minister and then shamelessly justifying it as realpolitik or that otherwise, you’ll face the green wave, blah-blah.

The bottom line, we gave up our principles for short-term gain. Now, we have to live with it.

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