As Kedah Govt Set To Fall Parties Hold Flurry Of Meetings Press Conferences

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ALOR SETAR: Kedah is drawing all the attention today with a flurry of press conferences being arranged
The tenure of Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir is set to end by noon Tuesday (May 12) when two assemblymen aligned with former PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali are scheduled to announce their stand in the state’s current political upheaval
As the current state government is in limbo, Perikatan Nasional is also expected to hold a press conference at the Kedah Club at 3pm
The press conference will be chaired by Kedah PAS, which is set to lead the new state government
The subject of the press conference is not known but it is believed it would be related to the current political climate in the rice bowl state
On Sunday (May 10), PAS and Umno bigwigs held their own closed-door meeting at the PAS Kedah Complex in Kota Sarang Semut for about three hours
The meeting is believed to have discussed the move to topple the Mukhriz administration and install the Muafakat Nasional pact as the new state government
The state government is also expected to hold a press conference with all Pakatan Harapan coordinators in the state at Wisma Darul Aman, the state government administrative building, at 11am today
If all goes well, the new mentri besar is likely to be Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor, the Jeneri assemblyman from PAS
Sanusi, who cut his political teeth as the political secretary to the late mentri besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak, is expected to make the requisite courtesy call on the Sultan of Kedah in the next few days
The incoming Perikatan state government will comprise 15 assemblymen from PAS, four from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, and two each from Umno and PKR
With a total of 23 assemblymen, Perikatan will have a solid 10-man majority in the 36-seat state assembly
Mukhriz’s government would have collapsed much earlier had he not appealed to Azmin, now a Senior Minister in the Perikatan government, for help to hold on to Kedah
It is learnt that Azmin then approached PAS and Umno to maintain the status quo and give Mukhriz a chance
PAS sources said Mukhriz had even offered them state executive councillor posts but PAS president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang said his party was not interested to work with Parti Amanah Negara, the PAS offshoot party
This will be the second time Mukhriz has had to make a premature exit from the top job in the state
He was mentri besar for barely three years from 2013 to 2016 before he was sacked by then Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak
Back then, Mukhriz’s troubles began because his father Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had fallen out with Najib
It is ironic that the script and even some of the actors have not changed much from then to now – Dr Mahathir is now trying to topple Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, and Mukhriz is once again the sacrificial lamb
The move to give the top job to PAS will be good optics for Perikatan and would send a signal that the coalition believes in power-sharing. - Star

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