KUALA LUMPUR: Perikatan Nasional (PN) lost the boost it needed to form the government yesterday, when 10 Barisan Nasional members of parliament (MP) recalled their earlier support.
This, the New Straits Times has learnt, was also the basis for the palace to issue a statement yesterday saying neither the coalition nor Pakatan Harapan (PH) had the majority support of members of the Dewan Rakyat.
It is learnt that the withdrawal of support was done through statutory declarations sent via e-mail to the palace about 2pm yesterday.
Among others, the e-mail read, "...I withdraw my support to YB Tan Sri Dato Haji Mahiaddin Bin Md Yassin, member of parliament for Pagoh (P143) as the 10th prime minister.
The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah had later summoned PN chief Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and PH chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, both eyeing the prime minister's post, to the palace, just after 4pm. This was when he conveyed to them the news, discussed the impasse with both the leaders separately and subsequently decreed that he wanted to meet BN's 30 MPs, whose number both coalitions are after.
In a press conference after his audience with the king yesterday, Muhyiddin said he had submitted the SDs to Istana Negara on Monday and that he had the majority needed for his claim on Putrajaya.
Yesterday, during a press conference at his residence after the palace meeting, Muhyiddin made an open rejection to the king's proposal for PN and PH to work together in forming the government.
"I want to prove that when we submitted this (the SDs)… we had more than 112 MPs (supporting PN). That's why we were confident that we could form the government.
"But when I met (the King today), he said this was not enough.
"I don't know what was the reason for this, but the proof is there," he said in reference to the SDs.
A source told the NST that the move by the 10 was done covertly after the mover of the plot had contacted Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) chairman Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg through an agent misleading him that 18 Umno leaders were with them to support PN.
"This was entirely a fabrication. Because of this the Sarawak premier today has not even spoken to BN leaders despite saying publicly recently that GPS would follow BN's lead in lending support to PN."
The mover is not even in the BN top leadership.