KUCHING: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s decision to remove Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as his Deputy Prime Minister is his prerogative.
His announcement on this yesterday was no doubt shocking but Land Development Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing was not surprised by his decision.
“I’m not surprised that (Tan Sri) Muhyiddin was dropped as Deputy Prime Minister. You can’t expect to stay on after publicly criticising your boss,” he told reporters when met after the Ramah Tamah Aidilfitri celebration held at the old State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Complex here yesterday.
Prior to the Cabinet reshuffle, Muhyiddin had been openly critical on his views regarding Najib’s involvement with the controversial 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
Masing said he understood why the prime minister had decided to remove Muhyiddin.
“I think I can understand why he (Najib) decided to make such a drastic move and I’m sure the decision was made after a very careful consideration,” he remarked.
He also pointed out that Najib’s decision to appoint Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as Deputy Prime Minister was because Zahid had been a strong supporter of the prime minister.
“(Datuk Seri) Najib did what any normal prime minister would do. He will assemble his team; a group of people whom he can trust and work to achieve his objectives.
“Certainly it will take a few weeks for us to realise what Barisan Nasional and Umno will do to strengthen themselves,” he opined.
On Sri Aman MP Masir Kujat’s appointment as Deputy Home Minister replacing Dato Sri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar who has been appointed Natural Resources and Environment Minister, Masing, who is also Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president, expressed his utmost gratitude to Najib for the honour.
“This shows that the prime minister listens to our advice by accepting our PRS nominee to be in his administration.
“Masir’s appointment gives PRS one deputy minister post and one minister post which is held by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Joseph Entulu Belaun. This will give PRS an extra push as we ready ourselves for the next state election,” he said.