Muhyiddin has his way in party polls, proving his staying power

But campaign to wrest power from Anwar coalition continues to face headwinds

- Shannon Teoh

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia president Muhyiddin Yassin's hand-picked nominees won the three vice-presidencies in leadership polls on Nov 2, reflecting the former prime minister's hold on the embattled opposition party amid jostling among top leaders and recent defections.

The party's divisional general meetings that preceded the triennial internal polls saw at least 10 out of close to 200 Bersatu divisions suspended, while dozens of members have quit in Pahang and Johor states. Questions were also raised over the polls result for the youth chief.

Bersatu needs to avoid deeper turmoil if it wants to retain its position as the lynchpin of Malaysia's opposition pact Perikatan Nasional (PN), which includes Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS), and refocus its efforts on toppling Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's multi-coalition government.

Bersatu has 25 lawmakers in the federal Parliament, after six MPs were automatically ejected for backing Datuk Seri Anwar, while PAS has 43, making it the biggest party in Parliament. PAS also has the most state assemblymen.

Adding to its troubles, Bersatu - a Malay-based party founded by former Umno leaders - has been hit by back-to-back by-election losses in Nenggiri, Kelantan, in August and Mahkota, Johor, in September, making it vital to quickly turn the tide.

The polls result showed that, at the very least, the party has staved off further internal conflict, thanks to Muhyiddin's brokered compromise between factions led by former Cabinet ministers Hamzah Zainudin and Azmin Ali.