Is Perlis govt on shaky ground? Analysts say delayed sitting raises red flags

Is Perlis govt on shaky ground? Analysts say delayed sitting raises red flags



Speculations abound about the state of the Perlis government under Menteri Besar Abu Bakar Hamzah after the State Legislative Assembly sitting, scheduled from April 21 to 23, 2006, was postponed abruptly to an undetermined date. — Bernama pic

Sunday, 19 Apr 2026 2:03 PM MYT


KANGAR, April 19 — The sudden postponement of the Perlis State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting, offered without a solid reason, could quietly feed a dangerous perception: that the state government is either grappling with political instability or buckling under internal pressure, political analysts warn.

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) political analyst Prof Datuk Dr Sivamurugan Pandian said the delay of the sitting, originally set for April 21 to 23, could all too easily be read as an attempt to dodge a no-confidence motion or evade a test of majority support.

“In politics, when a DUN sitting is postponed without a clear explanation, the public reads between the lines. It begins to feel like a sign of instability or a government losing its nerve.

“If PAS or any party is seen as strong enough to bring a no-confidence motion, then the whisper that the Menteri Besar fears losing his grip will inevitably grow louder,” he told Bernama.

This sitting was supposed to be a milestone: the first DUN session under the leadership of Abu Bakar Hamzah, after the state Bersatu chief was sworn in as Perlis Menteri Besar on Dec 28 last year, a new chapter for a state watching anxiously.


Abu Bakar, who also serves as deputy chairman of Perikatan Nasional (PN) Perlis, rose to power following the resignation of PAS’s Mohd Shukri Ramli, who stepped down as Menteri Besar citing health reasons. Now, the shadow of uncertainty hangs over his fledgling leadership.

Political uncertainty in Perlis reached its breaking point last December, as whispers swelled into open speculation: eight assemblymen had reportedly withdrawn their support for Mohd Shukri.


Among them was Kuala Perlis assemblyman Abu Bakar, alongside three PAS representatives, Saad Seman (Chuping), Fakhrul Anwar Ismail (Bintong) and Ridzuan Hashim (Guar Sanji).

In the aftermath, PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang moved swiftly. On Dec 24, he announced that the three PAS assemblymen had lost their party membership and with it, their positions as elected representatives. The message was clear: loyalty had its price.

Now, with the sudden postponement of the DUN sitting, the spectre of that crisis has returned. Sivamurugan said Abu Bakar must come forward quickly with an official and transparent explanation, not just to silence the speculation flooding social media since the April 17 notice, but to reclaim a narrative slipping from his grasp.

He said the Menteri Besar must also secure the state government’s majority, hold it close, and set a new date for the sitting as soon as possible. Only then, he said, can public confidence begin to heal.

Echoing that concern, a political analyst from Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM), Prof Dr Mohd Azizuddin Mohd Sani, offered a starker verdict. Postponing a scheduled DUN sitting without an urgent reason, he said, does not suggest strategy. It suggests something far more fragile: a shaky leadership.

“There should be no postponement of a scheduled DUN sitting unless there is an extraordinarily compelling reason. When it is delayed, the people grow anxious; how long will this drag on? And why, really, is it happening?

“I urge the state government to come clean about what is unfolding so this matter can be laid to rest. Otherwise, the public will see this for what it appears to be: the same unresolved conflict that has haunted Perlis since last December,” he said.

Mohd Azizuddin, who also serves as UUM’s deputy vice-chancellor (Academic and International), offered a sharper reading. The postponement, he suggested, may be a bid for time, a chance for the Menteri Besar to continue negotiating with the PAS assemblymen, desperately trying to keep the state government from falling over the edge.

“If the state government collapses, the fracture between Bersatu and PAS will only deepen, out in the open for all to see. The crisis would drag on, and PN would emerge even weaker, perhaps irreparably so,” he warned.

Meanwhile, Perlis DUN speaker Rus’sele Eizan injected a quiet but firm reminder: the sitting must be convened no later than June 11. Otherwise, the assembly will dissolve itself, no drama, no negotiation, just the cold, mechanical consequence of a clock running out.

In the 15th General Election, PN captured 14 state seats: nine for PAS and five for Bersatu. Pakatan Harapan (PH), meanwhile, managed just one through PKR in the Indera Kayangan constituency.

But that was then. Today, the numbers tell a quieter, more fragile story. PAS now holds only six seats, with three of its assemblymen having been stripped of party membership after they withdrew support from Mohd Shukri last December.

So here is the current power equation in Perlis: PN sits on 11 seats, six from PAS, five from Bersatu, while PH holds one.

The majority is slim, the trust between allies thinner, and what comes next depends on a state government holding its breath. — Bernama