PUTRAJAYA, May 18 — Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today expressed hope that MPs from both sides of the political divide will come to their senses and support him when he moves his motion of no-confidence against Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

In a press conference here, Dr Mahathir said that it is the right of every MP to move such a motion, regardless of whether he or she holds enough support from MPs.

"To move a vote of no-confidence is the right of every MP, irrespective of whether he thinks he is going to win or lose.

"But in this case, we feel that when we expose the wrongdoings of the government, although some people may say we don’t have the majority, we expect that good sense would prevail among MPs so they will back a motion that is meant to save this country from someone who is not doing good for the country,” he said when asked if he commands majority support in Parliament.

Dr Mahathir then laid out his reasons for the planned motion, adding that this includes Muhyiddin’s alleged covert dealings to take Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) out from Pakatan Harapan (PH) without consensus from the coalition’s members.

He said another reason was Muhyiddin’s willingness to work with the very party which PH members had worked hard to topple. 

"Though there was a motion to exit PH, it was not discussed in the Supreme Council, with regards to collaboration with Perikatan Nasional (PN). No, there wasn’t, but he just did it according to his own whim. That’s why we do not have confidence in this leader from Bersatu, who does not care about his party at all,” Dr Mahathir added.

He then claimed that many companies and business owners had also not benefitted from the government’s RM250 billion allocation to help weather these tough times, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Therefore, we have the right, regardless whether it is the Opposition or the government party, to table a motion of no-confidence against the prime minister, who until now, does not hold on to his promises.

"Previously, he (Muhyiddin) didn’t want to work with thieves and robbers, but now, he has them in the government and gives good treatment ... to those who committed crimes,” Dr Mahathir alleged.

Dr Mahathir had previously filed a motion for a vote of no-confidence against  Muhyiddin, but today’s Dewan Rakyat sitting did not feature any debates and was limited to just the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s royal address.

The Agong said that MPs, regardless of their political standing, should not drag the country into any more political crises with the situation compounded with the Covid-19 pandemic.