James Chin: Anwar had no choice but to let Zahid free

James Chin: Anwar had no choice but to let Zahid free

DEPUTY Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s discharge was “purely a play to maintain power”, said University of Tasmania Asian Studies Prof James Chin told Asia Times.

He said Prime Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim “didn’t really have a choice” as “he was forced to do this because he knows that if Zahid goes down, another UMNO leader will pull the entire Barisan Nasional (BN) component of 30 MPs out of his government and he’ll be finished”.

The publication stated that the political ramifications of Zahid’s case are still unclear.

The Pakatan Harapan (PH)-BN alliance managed to win two by-elections in Johor state on Sept 9, despite the opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) increasing its vote share in line with national trends after failing to snatch three states from PAS in the August state elections.

Chin added that the unity coalition winning in Johor should not be taken as a sign that voters, “by and large, agree with Zahid’s discharge, noting that Johor’s influential monarchy had also signalled support for the PH-BN pact and that this was a factor.

“People understand it’s about political survival more than anything else.”

Meanwhile, Anwar has recently given his explanations on why Zahid was freed with a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA).

The PM echoed Zahid’s claim that the charges against him stemmed from his refusal to comply with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s request to dissolve UMNO.

Anwar denied interfering in the decision while saying it was within the powers of the attorney-general to proceed with the DNAA.

He also noted that the charges against Zahid were “questionable” and not carried out professionally.

“Was it 47? Every cheque is a charge. So the charge is questionable. Every cheque issued is a charge by itself, which does not necessarily seem to be professionally done,” he said when asked about the dropped graft charges during a session at the annual Milken Institute Asia Summit in Singapore. – Sept 16, 2023