Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin believes trust between Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has reached its lowest point since the unity government was formed in 2022.
Speaking in the latest episode of his Keluar Sekejap podcast, the former health minister said Barisan Nasional’s decision to join forces with Perikatan Nasional in the Negeri Sembilan state election had created a ‘massive rupture’ between BN and Pakatan Harapan.
The BN-PN alliance won 25 seats in the state election, while PH secured the remaining 11.
‘PH will say it was a betrayal. BN will say that, well, we just agreed to work with you at the federal level. It doesn’t mean we are tied with you forever. Whichever way you want to look at it, there was a massive rupture,’ Khairy said.
BN’s support could determine government’s future
Khairy said the question now was how long BN would continue supporting the unity government, adding that the timing of the next general election was ‘heavily dependent’ on the coalition.
‘I feel the government could survive even if all of BN’s MPs withdrew their support, although it would still be very precarious. And with the rebel MPs from PKR, and some MPs from Sabah interested in joining BN, you start seeing the numbers getting fewer and fewer. Perhaps the cards are really with Zahid,’ he said.
Khairy was referring to Wong Chen’s recent resignation as Subang MP and his departure from PKR to join Bersama, which is led by former PKR leaders Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.
He also referred to the presence of PKR’s Ampang and Petaling Jaya MPs Rodziah Ismail and Lee Chean Chung at Bersama’s launch in May.
Khairy further referred to speculation that independent Kudat MP Verdon Bahanda and his brother, Kota Marudu MP Wetrom Bahanda of Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat, would join BN.
