MELAKA: Rembia state assemblyman Datuk Muhammad Jailani Khamis, who was previously part of the government bloc, has been moved to the opposition bloc, according to Melaka State Assembly Speaker Datuk Ibrahim Durum.
Ibrahim said the decision was made after reviewing several matters concerning Muhammad Jailani’s membership in PAS, following PAS secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan’s announcement at a press conference in Parliament on July 16.
He explained that he had sent a letter to Takiyuddin seeking confirmation on the matter but had not received any response.
“The assemblyman’s admission is vague, merely claiming he is a PAS member, and that is the only evidence I have (to make a decision),“ he said during the Melaka State Assembly sitting at Seri Negeri today.
With this latest development, the number of assemblymen supporting the government now stands at 25, while the opposition has three, he added.
Muhammad Jailani, representing Barisan Nasional, won the Rembia seat with a majority of 860 votes in a five-cornered contest during the 2021 Melaka state election.
In July last year, UMNO suspended Muhammad Jailani’s membership for six years for allegedly sabotaging the party by attending the announcement of the Perikatan Nasional candidate for the Simpang Jeram by-election in Bakri, Johor.