PETALING JAYA: Top leaders in Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia are considering doing away with the chairman position, in an effort to unite rival factions within the party.

According to a source familiar with the discussions, the abolishment of the chairman position was being mooted in order to prevent divides within the party, given the recent infighting involving Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

“Now you have two figures holding the top positions in the party. It’s as though you are the captain of the ship, and then there’s another captain as well.

“There is an overlapping chain of command. It would be much more productive if the chairman position was abolished. The president should be the highest position in the party, ” said the source.

To abolish the chairman position, it would require an emergency meeting to be called, where the party constitution will be amended.

“They would have to sit down and discuss this, ” said the source briefly.

At the same time, the source also hinted that Dr Mahathir and his supporters may be purged from Bersatu soon.

“There is a provision in the Constitution to sack members who go against the party, ” the source said briefly.

It is unsure which provisions were going to be referred to, as the Bersatu constitution is not publicly available.

Recently, the RoS announced that Dr Mahathir is no longer the chairman, as his resignation as party chairman on Feb 24 comes into effect immediately.

Muhyiddin, as the current party president, will be the acting chairman until the next Bersatu polls.

However, Dr Mahathir disputed the RoS’ announcement, saying that he is still the Bersatu chairman and the RoS might not have taken into account several factors over his “resignation” and Muhyiddin’s appointment as acting chairman.

Dr Mahathir also wants the RoS to probe and resolve the termination of Datuk Marzuki Yahya as party secretary-general and Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin’s appointment as his replacement, which was allegedly made “without consultation with the Bersatu chairman”.

Bersatu is presently split between the factions of Dr Mahathir and Muhyiddin, with the former intending to return to Pakatan Harapan while the latter wants to remain in the Perikatan pact.

Divisions between the two factions intensified in recent days, with a no confidence motion tabled against Muhyiddin’s leadership, culminating in Dr Mahathir’s son Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir’s second fall as Kedah Mentri Besar.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/05/21/bersatu-considers-abolishing-chairman-position-sources-say