SHAH ALAM: The political power that has been dominated by Malays has diminished following infighting between political parties after the 15th General Election (GE15).
This, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said was as the current prime minister was not from a Malay-based party, the first since the country gained independence.
"Umno was the main party which ruled the administration for 61 years until they lost in GE14. Soon after, Bersatu became the lead party under Pakatan Harapan (PH) until the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government was formed in March 2020.
"However, the landscape changed right after GE15 where PH, with only 82 seats, had managed to form a government with the support of other parties and this is the first time in history that our prime minister is not from a Malay-based party.
"In fact, PN, which won 74 seats with the significant support gained from the Malays became the opposition bloc. This is also the first time that the opposition is 100 per cent Malay and Bumiputera," he said during the president's policy speech at Bersatu's annual general assembly (AGM), today.
The former prime minister also said that the Malay community will also lose power once the redelineation exercise of the electoral boundaries is done, adding that DAP could win more seats once the exercise is completed.
"The 40 seats that it won (in GE15) could be increased to 80 seats and this does not take into account the possible gerrymandering in existing parliamentary areas to favor DAP and PH.
"If this happens, DAP can become a highly influential party in the government and I believe that its goal to fight for equal rights and abolish the pro-Bumiputera policies will be pursued."
Following this, Muhyiddin said it was not odd if the government indirectly took actions towards certain matters that could touch on the sensitivity of the Malays and Muslim community.
This includes the government's decision to withdraw the appeal over the ruling which allows non-Muslims to use the word 'Allah', he said.
"Whatever happened to the case and what is the resolution? Has the government heeded the decree of the Sultan of Selangor (Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah) that sought a solution for the matter?
"(And) I am not saying this to fuel racial sentiments or create disputes, however, to correct the situation.
"The Malays and Bumiputera are the majority in the country and if they feel that they are marginalised or their rights are being challenged, it will become challenging to establish harmony and political stability in the nation."
At the same time, he also called out for Bersatu to initiate efforts to unite Malay parties in the country.
"Efforts must be made to unite Malay parties. Do not let our dispute (with others) cause this land of ours to become someone else's property.
"Time is not on our side and power is no longer in our hands, hence, efforts to allow PN to take over Putrajaya must also be expedited."