Would PM ignore party’s request to dissolve Parliament? ask Tok Mat

Iklan
Dissolving parliament and calling for a general election is up to the King and not entirely on the prime minister, says Umno's Mohamad Hasan. - Bernama Photo.

Tok Mat’s response follows after an Umno member asked if they could ask the prime minister to quickly dissolve the Parliament.

KLUANG – Umno can pressure Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob to trigger an early election however the issue of such magnitude is not entirely up to him, said Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

Mohamad, commonly known as Tok Mat said dissolving the Parliament also requires the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, and relies on the advice of the prime minister

"Umno could pressure the prime minister to do so but it is not entirely up to him as he must still seek the consent of the King.

"The prime minister could ignore the party’s request but being a party man, would he want to ignore what we have asked for?,’’ he said during an event in Machap earlier today.

Tok Mat’s response follows after an Umno member asked whether they could ask the prime minister to quickly dissolve Parliament to make way for a general election.

Pundits have pointed out that the result of the Johor polls could be used by the winning parties to prompt an early general election as they believed they hold an advantage to win.

However, Tok Mat said by convention if the advice of the prime minister to dissolve Parliament is rejected, then he or she must step down.

He also cited another demand made by Umno that is to allow for another i-Citra EPF withdrawal facility of up to RM10,000 for the last time which was dismissed by the finance ministry under Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz.

"In this case, the prime minister could not do anything because the finance minister, along with another very important portfolio, the Home Minister, is held by Bersatu,’’ he said.

Currently, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin is the Home Minister.