Passing the Baton

Wan Azizah Ismail, the Parliamentary Opposition Leader, has resigned as an MP to pave the way for Anwar Ibrahim, her husband, to stand for a by-election in Permatang Pauh constituency much to the chagrin of UMNO leaders. This is the first step taken by Anwar in his quest to become the next Prime Minister of Malaysia comes 16th September 2008. Mahathir Mohamed, a former premier, has lauded the move as a symbol of love of a wife for a husband, barely displaying any overtone of sarcasm against Wan Azizah nor Anwar.
But Syed Hamid Albar, the Minister of Home Affairs, and Noraini Ahmad, the Deputy Minister of Human Resources, both of the ruling UMNO, have slammed the resignation as a betrayal of voters' trust and a waste of public money (in running a fresh election). They must be talking through their ar*** !! Are they oblivious of the fact that the People's Front is now working hard to topple the present government of Abdullah Badawi by garnering supports from the National Front's MPs through defections ? They must be very, very naive if they are.
Any layman in the street could easily read Wan Azizah's manoeuvre as a strategic move to facilitate the path for Anwar to take over the premiership. What's wrong with that ?