A glimpse of the title one would know this article is about Tan Sri Annuar Musa, the former secretary-general of Umno and Muafakat Nasional, the NGO he founded.

But first, some comments by Datuk Larry Sng.

According to Sng, former federal minister Zuraida Kamaruddin is using Annuar’s NGO for political purposes, although he did not use those words exactly.

Sng, as we know, is president of Parti Bangsa Malaysia or PBM. He was involved not too long ago in a leadership dispute with Zuriada with both claiming legitimacy as PBM president.

Long story short, the Registrar of Societies ruled in Sng’s favor. That’s not the story here.

For the record, following GE15, Sng is the sole PBM member of Parliament. Zuraida, as we know, failed to defend her Ampang seat which she first won in 2008 under the Pakatan Rakyat ticket.

Now she is among politicians announced by Annuar to have joined his Muafakat Nasional. Hence Sng’s comments.

“This is a good move for her since she has more time on her hands, especially now that she is not holding any senior position in PBM or any government role,” Sng was quoted saying by FMT recently.

And he went on to say, “I also foresee that she and her supporters will use Muafakat Nasional as a springboard for her future political ambitions.”

Now. that is the story here!

Sny could very well be right. Therefore, if one is to believe that Zuraida will use the NGO to launch or relaunch (depending on how one views her “predicament”) her political career, how about the Muafakat Nasional founder himself?

Will Annuar use his NGO as his political springboard? Taking into consideration he has been sacked by Umno and is now in political “wilderness,” so to speak.

As I see it, Annuar is still very much the politician he is known for all these years, and at 66, is not showing signs of quitting politics. To put it boldly, he is still planning and scheming.

True in announcing the formation of his Muafakat Nasional, Annuar “explicitly” said his Muafakat Nasional is not a political party and should not be “confused” with the Muafakat Nasional pact featuring Umno and PAS in 2019.

That MN has now ceased to exist. So it seems, but no official announcement has been made to that effect.

But somehow Annuar appears to love the name very much –choosing “Muafakat Nasional” for his NGO of which he is president.

Surely, he would have many other names to choose from. But no. To him, Muafakat Nasional it is!

Perhaps it’s because of sentimental reasons. Perhaps he feels “attached” to the name based on the role he played in establishing the alliance with Umno-PAS Muafakat Nasional back then.

As far as the NGO Muafakat Nasional goes, Annuar said it was formed to “foster cooperation and unity among the Islamic community and strengthen the political system based on Rukun Negara and the Federal Constitution.”

Now, doesn’t that make his NGO very much sounding like political parties Bersatu and PAS, and Umno of old?

Or at the very least like the many right-wing NGOs which we have seen buzzing around for years. The so-called “defenders of Islam and the Malay race”?

Anuar’s Muafakat Nasional’s 30-strong Supreme Council is predominantly Malay-Muslim. But, there are one or two non-Malays, and that would give it a “Malaysia” look, I suppose. Definitely that’s what Annuar is hoping for!

And also included is controversial Professor Ridhuan Tee Abdullah. But Tee, a Chinese Muslim, is more Malay than Malay!

And what about the other council members? Zuraida apart, there are a “good’ number of politicians as said earlier. Those who had either lost GE15 or were dropped by parties from contesting the polls, like former Umno warlord Tan Sri Noh Omar.

Then there are also Mohd Reduan Md Yusof of Bersatu and Pejuang’s Datuk Seri Khairuddin Abu Hassan. That would give the NGO a “political flavor”, wouldn’t you say?

But with Annuar repeatedly claiming that his NGO is not a political party, then it is no stopping political party members from joining. Clever move this I would say.

As of December 12, Annuar claimed his Muafakat Nasional had received 10,000 applications for membership.

Mujibu Abdul Muis of research outfit Ilham Center, has this to say when asked why Annuar opted to set up his NGO: “Muafakat Nasional could very well be his reaction to what happened to Umno post-GE15, like the abrupt drop in Malay support stolen by Perikatan Nasional and perhaps the possibility Umno can never regain what it lost.”

Put simply, Muafakat Nasional is trying to portray itself as an alternative for the Malays!

I can’t help but ponder whether Annuar’s “actual” plan is to get Umno and PAS back together and a big political force (with Bersatu) via his NGO, taking into account his ties with PAS leaders, “his people” in Umno of which the numbers cannot be known for sure, and Bersatu.

Annuar is on record urging his supporters and even members of his own family “to stay put in Umno.” Could this be a ploy à la Trojan Horse? Waiting to “pounce” when a friendly insider mounts a challenge to topple Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi? When party elections are held, probably in May next year. Hence paving the way to patch ties with PAS when or if Zahid is out of the way.

“To topple Zahid is no easy feat. Those in Umno who are not in the president’s camp have lost in GE15 or have been axed earlier. In short, Zahid and team are in complete control of the party. What more they are in government. And the big question is just who dares or is capable to dislodge the party president?” said Mujibu.

Setting up the Muafakat Nasional NGO, said Mujibu, could be a good or only option for Annuar and Co “to face all possibilities.” But it would come to nought if there is no “positive” response from within, meaning from Umno people who are strong, powerful and influential.

Now back to the all-important question once again: Why did Annuar set up his NGO?

It’s all about politics. And yes, power.

(Mohsin Abdullah is a veteran journalist and now a freelancer who writes about this, that and everything else.)