[COLUMNIST] The silence is deafening in Parliament among UMNO/BN MP's

WHILE BN’s 'friends' and foes in Parliament are double-teaming to slam dunk Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on his Discharged Not Amounting To Acquittal (DNAA) case, the silence among the BN MP’s who pledged their allegience to him is almost deafening!

Most conspicuous is the absence of the UMNO law minister from taking the floor to present her argument.

Last week, Perikatan Nasional MP's, from the start of sitting, went to town seeking to debate on the DNAA issue. Then, it was followed by DAP namely Lim Guan Eng who probably had a temporary amnesia forgetting that he himself was handed down with a sweetheart judgement which was a 'full acquittal' on the recommendation of the then Attorney General Tommy Thomas in 2018.

Fortunately for him, the BN/UMNO MP's then, like now, were lackadaisical in their duties and failed to demand for Tommy Thomas to appear before the Select Committee with the same vigour that DAP and PN are showing in Parliament today. It’s no wonder how BN got whacked to the bones in the GE15 recently.

After Guan Eng, came another of our allies from PKR who sang the same tune of the opposition trying to paint a grim picture of BN/ UMNO by seeking an explanation on the DNAA issue.

BN MP's (barring those who are persona non grata in UMNO) can’t remain quiet in this circumstance.

They must either come out in support to call for the Attorney General to present himself to the Select Committee or object to it in favour of the positive outcome by the Court on Ahmad Zahid.

We have to state our stand either way.

Remaining silent is like being a weak orphan in Parliament begging to be adopted by anyone for shelter.

For reference, these are the BN Members in the current Parliament.

Deputy Speaker of The House:

Datuk Ramli Mohd Noor (Cameron Highlands)

Executive:

Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (Bagan Datok)

Datuk Seri Mohamed Hassan (Rembau)

Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin (Kota Tinggi)

Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said (Pengerang)

Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan (Pontian)

Datuk Siti Aminah Aching (Beaufort)

Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad (Lipis)

Datuk Seri Shamsul Anuar Nasarah (Lenggong)

Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurop (Pensiangan)

Datuk Mohamad Alamin (Kimanis)

BN Backbenchers:

Datuk Seri M. Saravanan (Tapah)

Datuk Mohamad Shahar Abdullah (Paya Besar)

Datuk Seri Sheikh Mohmed Puzi Sheikh Ali (Pekan)

Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (Bera)

Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani (Titiwangsa)

Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias (Jelebu)

Datuk Shamshulkahar Mohd Deli (Jempol)

Datuk Adnan Abu Hassan (Kuala Pilah)

Datuk Mohd Isam Mohd Isa (Tampin)

Datuk Seri Noraini Ahmad (Parit Sulong)

Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong (Air Hitam)

Datuk Seri Hasni Mohamed (Simpang Renggam)

Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (Sembrong)

Manndzri Nasib (Tenggara)

Datuk Seri Wee Jeck Seng (Tanjung Piai)

Datuk Shahelmey Yahya (Putatan)

Datuk Suhaimi Nasir (Libaran)

Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin (Kinabatangan)

Datuk Andi Muhammad Suryady Bandy (Kalabakan).

For a party that highly promotes our 'cooperation' with DAP to the Malays, and still boasts of being steady on our feet against Perikatan Nasional, our MP's have become like disabled mutes in Parliament.

What is becoming prevalent by the actions of our allies in the Unity Government is that, despite being in bed with UMNO, they are trying to project a clean image of themselves by asking for the AG’s explanation on his decision to withdraw the charges which led to the DNAA.

While they are distancing themselves in fear of being soiled in this unfortunate but necessary union, UMNO must realise that this 'marriage' won’t last long.

And if we don’t prepare ourselves with strong contingencies, UMNO may soon be kicked out of the house into the streets like a two dollar slut.

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* Datuk Tengku Putra Haron Aminurrashid Jumat is a Johor State Assemblyman For Kempas N47 (2013-2018) and UMNO member: 01053359.

**The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of Astro AWANI.