Kuala Lumpur: Labuan MP Suhaili Abdul Rahman claimed that Hamzah Zainudin was “furious” when he and five other lawmakers shifted their support to the government, alleging that Hamzah labelled them the “six scoundrels.”
Suhaili said then-Bersatu Secretary-General Hamzah was unhappy because their decision to back Anwar Ibrahim’s government in 2023 reduced the number of Bersatu MPs in the Dewan Rakyat.
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“That decision was not influenced by anyone, especially not Hamzah. In fact, he was furious when he learned that we had decided to leave Perikatan Nasional without consulting him,” he told FMT.
The other MPs who expressed support for Anwar were Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal (Bukit Gantang), Azizi Abu Naim (Gua Musang), Dr Zulkafperi Hanapi (Tanjong Karang), Zahari Kechik (Jeli), and Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid (Kuala Kangsar).
All six MPs justified their support for the federal government by citing the needs of their constituencies. However, they maintained that they remained loyal to Bersatu, enabling them to avoid triggering the anti-party hopping law that would have required them to vacate their seats.
Last month, Hamzah filed a RM100 million defamation suit against Bersatu co-founder Redzuan Yusof, alleging that Redzuan falsely claimed that Hamzah had engineered the switch of support by the six MPs to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Hamzah contended that Redzuan failed to apologise for statements published in Berita Harian in November which he described as false and damaging to his reputation as opposition leader and senior Bersatu figure at the time.
Last month,Hamzah and several others were expelled from Bersatu following a leadership crisis with party president Muhyiddin Yassin. He subsequently declared war on Muhyiddin, describing himself as Muhyiddin’s “number one enemy.”
Suhaili said recent developments in Bersatu have vindicated the six MPs’ decision to support Anwar as they have avoided being entangled in the party’s internal conflicts.
He added that Anwar had kept his promise to support him and the five other MPs, noting that Putrajaya allocated RM300 million in the 2024 budget to resolve Labuan’s chronic water supply issues, and began construction of a 120-megawatt power plant in Labuan.
“We receive the same allocations as other government MPs and can assist the people,” said Suhaili. “We do not regret our decision, especially seeing Bersatu now. Everyone can see its flaws.”
