PM Says Not Aware Of Any Party Leaving BN

KOTA KINABALU, June 17 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Tuesday he was not aware of any move by a Barisan Nasional (BN) component party or members of parliament wanting to leave the coalition and form an independent grouping.
"I have not been told anything about it," he told reporters here.
Abdullah, who is BN chairman, was asked to comment on recent reports that a BN party was contemplating to leave the coalition.
Monday, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said there was no indication so far that a state BN component party would leave the coalition soon, and described such talk as mere speculation.
Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) Deputy President Datuk Raymond Tan also denied Monday that the party would leave the coalition, saying the party would remain a BN component.
On Sunday, Gua Musang Member of Parliament, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah of Umno, hinted that a BN party from East Malaysia might leave the coalition before the end of the month.

BN desertion to begin tomorrow?

Speculations are rife that a Barisan Nasional component party will be making an important announcement tomorrow that would leave Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's government hanging in a balance.
Sources told Malaysiakini tonight that the announcement by the Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp) tomorrow will "lead to a drastic change of the political scenario in Malaysia".
However the sources refused to reveal if the party would leave the 14-member BN coalition and join Anwar Ibrahim-led Pakatan Rakyat.
A party official confirmed that the party leadership will be making an important announcement tomorrow at a press conference to be held in Kota Kinabalu.
"You'll find out about it at the news conference," he said when pressed for more details.
He also stressed that the party's decision was made with the state's and people's interest in mind.
And all that he was willing to divulge was that his party was not the only one who would be making the "shocking move".
Anwar waiting in the wings
In recent months PKR's de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim has claimed that he had the necessary members of Parliament who were willing to defect from BN to Pakatan Rakyat.
Anwar needs a total number of 30 BN MPs to be able to form government and become the new prime minister.
And on Sunday, Anwar openly asked the people to give his government a chance, stating that he had the necessary numbers to form the government.
He added that he had MPs from almost all major BN partners who were ready to jump the ship and be part of the Pakatan government. This was followed by denials from almost all BN coalition parties.
To make things interesting, Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah announced over the weekend that he was told during his visit to Sabah that one BN coalition party was ready to crossover before the end of this month.
While Razaleigh did not name the party, he was widely believed to be referring to Sapp.
Political manoeuvres
Yesterday Sapp deputy president Raymond Tan Shu Kiah denied that his party was about to defect to Pakatan.
When asked about this denial, the Sabah sources told Malaysiakini that Tan's remarks were just part and parcel of "political manoeuvres".
Sapp is led by outspoken former chief minister Yong Teck Lee, who in recent months has questioned Abdullah's policies towards Sabah and the federal government's inability to solve the illegal migrants' problems in the state.
Sapp has two members of Parliament and four state assemblypersons, which means that this party's defection alone, if it is announced in the press conference tomorrow or if it happens anytime soon, would not be sufficient for Pakatan to form the new federal government.
After winning the March 8 general election with the help of Sabah and Sarawak coalition partners, Abdullah has been under immense pressure to repay these two states for delivering the votes.
As a result, Abdullah has given some top posts in the Parliament to the Sabah and Sarawak MPs. He has also announced billion-ringgit projects for Sabah and Sarawak.
He is however still under fire for not giving enough sweeteners, especially in the cabinet.
Sources said that if Supp decided to leave BN tomorrow, their departure could lead the way for other parties to do the same, giving Abdullah's government a steep deadline to either call for a snap election or be ready to handover the government to Anwar's Pakatan.
PBS leader quits in protest
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development, a firm critic of Abdullah has decided to quit his party after having failed to force the premier to step down.
Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) Supreme Council member Dr Chong Eng Leong tendered his resignation from the party today, to take effect immediately.
Chong, also the party's Luyang division chief, had been critical on the federal government and the prime minister for not taking concrete action on the calls to resolve the illegal immigrants and illegal issuance of MyKad to foreigners.
"Statements after statements begging our Prime Minister to hear our cry to defend our security and sovereignty in past years fell on deaf ears," he said in a statement.
"He (Abdullah) did not mean what he says. I want him to leave office but instead I was asked to leave PBS by PBS," he said.
He added that Abdullah had simply ignored Sabah leaders' calls for the formation of the Royal Commission of Inquiry on illegal immigrants and instead announced the formation of the federal cabinet committee, which he said was the same old committee set up in 2000.
PBS is also a BN coalition partner.

tunku : if it's true that a coalition party is leaving BN , do you think they will inform pak lah in advance ? so, for sure pak lah is not aware of it. if it is true Sapp leaving BN, it will not harm BN yet as it has only 2 members of parliament but it will be made a starting point for others to follow.if pak lah stays as pm till next year ,disaster will be waiting for BN.