KUALA LUMPUR – Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan has joined the chorus of MPs to pour cold water on Langkah Dubai, which was aimed at toppling the unity government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Ahmad, who is part of the Umno Supreme Council, said the so-called move to unseat the government is just a “fatamorgana” (hallucination).
“For the 30 MPs in Umno and Barisan Nasional, we have signed (a declaration) to pay RM100 million each (in compensation) if we were to jump ship. Which MP has that kind of money?
“Even if 30 of us were to leave (the unity government), the government remains with the support of 122 MPs (147+5-30). The rakyat craves stability and economic strength,” he tweeted today.
His math is based on the total MPs in the unity government, including five Bersatu MPs who pledged support for Anwar over the recent months.
Several leaders in the unity government, including Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof, Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri, and DAP’s Syahredzan Johan, had denied knowledge of the movement while the opposition decried the accusations.
However, Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Lokman Noor Adam said Langkah Dubai was allegedly masterminded by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his right-hand man Tun Daim Zainuddin.
Daim, who is being investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission for graft and money laundering, was said to be willing to fork out hundreds of millions of ringgit to “buy over” government MPs.
“There are allegations saying that Daim is willing to spend RM750 million to buy over 15 (government) MPs.
“If Daim is willing to spend huge amounts of money on (buying over) MPs before he has even managed to secure the Agong’s blessing, I consider that really stupid,” Lokman told Scoop today.
Yesterday, J-Kom Deputy Director-General Datuk Ismail Yusop said in a Facebook post that Langkah Dubai was started during a recent vacation undertaken by Perikatan Nasional leaders and government officials to the United Arab Emirates.
During the overseas visit, a meeting supposedly took place to assign specific tasks to persons responsible for identifying government MPs who were likely to switch their support to the opposition with inducements and pave the way for a backdoor government.
After the unity government was formed, Umno MPs signed an agreement with the party stipulating that they must relinquish their membership if they go against party decisions, as well as pay RM100 million in compensation.
This was said to involve Article 49A of the federal constitution, resulting in defectors losing their seats in the Dewan Rakyat. – December 31, 2023