This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on May 27, 2019 - June 2, 2019

WE are once again hearing rumours that the Perak menteri besar is going to reshuffle his executive committee after the coming Hari Raya. And word has it that Dr Abdul Aziz Bari, who holds the education, science, technology and environment portfolio, is to be dropped. How ironic as just months earlier, Aziz was said to be a top contender for the menteri besar’s post should Datuk Ahmad Faizal Azumu be replaced. The talk then was that Peja, as Faizal is fondly known, would be removed for a host of reasons, including incompetency and under-performance. That did not happen.

Now, there is speculation of an executive committee reshuffle. It is an open secret that Faizal and Aziz do not see eye to eye. Aziz was also accused of being involved in a plot to topple the MB, which he has consistently denied.

Faizal was made menteri besar despite being the only representative of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia to have won a seat in the state assembly in the 14th general election last year. Aziz missed the boat, observers say, just because he is from the DAP although his party won the most number of seats.

Against this backdrop, it is no surprise that Aziz is the focus of attention although the current talk is that the reshuffle will also see the removal of Abdul Yunus Jamhari, who is in charge of public utilities, infrastructure, agriculture and agro-based industry. In March, there had also been speculation that Yunus would be dropped. That did not happen.

Aziz admits he has been told by some people that he might face the axe after Hari Raya. However, he cannot ascertain the authenticity of the information.

“Legally, it is within the prerogative of the MB, but I think, in a coalition, he is more constrained”, says Aziz, a legal expert, particularly on the monarchy and constitutional law.

He added, “In a coalition, appointing and dropping ministers or exco members are decisions of parties, not the prime minister or MB alone. As appointments and portfolios are determined by the coalition partners, I don’t think Peja has the real power to dismiss anyone.”

In fact, Faizal has been quoted as saying that any changes to the exco must be decided by Pakatan Harapan’s top leadership. He made the statement in March in response to reports that Perak PKR wanted an exco member from the party replaced. For the record, he did not budge.

The big question now is will the menteri besar act as speculated? As one Pakatan Harapan insider sees it, the MB is dependent on the support of others in the administration as well as in Pakatan Harapan because, apart from him, there is only one other Bersatu member in the state assembly. That would be Sungai Manik representative Datuk Zainol Fadzi Paharuddin, who won on an Umno ticket but later crossed over to Bersatu.

Removing Aziz, says the PH insider, would “make Aziz a hero or a martyr even, given his relationship with the MB. Also, “dropping a Malay from DAP would disrupt the racial make-up in the administration”.

Aziz is Perak DAP vice-chairman — a post he won in the party elections sometime back. It will be interesting to see how DAP reacts should Faizal go ahead and drop Aziz.

A political observer says if Aziz is dropped, that could mean he has lost the backing of his bosses in the DAP. But then, DAP also does not want to be accused of being pushy or of being the real power controlling Pakatan Harapan, which is what Umno has been alleging all this while.

However, if Aziz is confined to just being Tebing Tinggi state assemblyman, it could hurt his party because it will create a perception about how well it takes care of its Malay leaders. So, it is a double-edged sword.

The view of state PKR chairman Farhash Wafa Salvador is that for now, “We should not disturb the dynamics of the state government with any changes which can be misinterpreted.”

He did not want to comment on Aziz’s situation, preferring instead to talk about Yunus, which is understandable considering that Yunus is from PKR.

Back in March, Farhash was adamant that Yunus should be replaced for what he described as “unsatisfactory performance”.

But now, his stance seems to have softened somewhat. In the event that Yunus is not dropped, says Farhash, Perak PKR will suggest to the menteri besar that his portfolio be reduced, taking into consideration “his performance up till now”.

Without going into specifics, Farhash says “we could be facing the possibility of various threats, including party hopping”. PKR, he adds, will always cooperate with the menteri besar to ensure the stability of the state government.

But first things first. Is the exco reshuffle this time for real or merely speculation as in the past?

I contacted several assemblymen, including one who is said to be a candidate to replace Aziz or Yunus, but they declined to comment.

Meanwhile, Malaysiakini has reported that state exco members Asmuni Awi and Howard Lee have dismissed the rumour. Asmuni was quoted as saying “no such thing”, while Lee said he had not got any information on the matter so far. At the time of writing, the MB had not issued any statement.

It looks like we will just have to wait until after Hari Raya, and that is not too far away.  

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