Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has replaced Umno deputy president, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, with Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin, as defence minister in his Cabinet reshuffle, and named five new ministers. Political analyst Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk says moving Mohamad to the Foreign Affairs Ministry is a sign of ‘undercurrents’ in Umno.
The onus right now is on Umno to add value to Pakatan Harapan when they go to the polls on Aug 12. But how will it do this when there are so many factions within the party? Universiti Sains Malaysia’s Centre for Policy Research and International Studies director, Associate Professor Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk, shares his views with Twentytwo13.
While talk has been rife on the need for Umno to throw its support behind DAP in the upcoming state polls, such conversations are “immaterial” as the former does not need the latter’s blessings to win, says political analyst Associate Professor Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk.
Manoeuvres to free Datuk Seri Najib Razak, to camouflage the shortcomings of Umno and its leadership, could become a double-edged sword, portraying Umno as an undemocratic and totalitarian system with no respect for the rule of law or the judiciary, writes Professor Emeritus Datuk Dr Mohamed Ghouse Nasuruddin.
While Khairy Jamaluddin is no Cristiano Ronaldo, the two seem to suffer the same fate following their ‘tell-all’ last November. Only time will tell if they will end their careers on a high or be damned for the rest of their lives.
Political analyst Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk said ‘extended lifeline’ enjoyed by Umno despite huge electoral defeats in 2018 and 2022, is the reason why the party is unable to reform. He likens it to a ‘virus’ that will just not go away.
Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi may have gone against his party’s constitution and could face the disciplinary board for meeting Pakatan Harapan leaders in a bid to form a new government.
An Umno Perak leader, Datuk Mohamad Iruan Zulkefli, has voiced his discontent over the leadership’s move to forge a working relationship with Pakatan Harapan at state and national levels, reminding Umno leaders that the grassroots had rejected PH’s Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and DAP.
After dropping several big names from Malaysia’s 15th General Election, some from within are unhappy with Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. For others, there is a newfound appreciation for the Umno president who has dared to do what his predecessors had feared.
Associate Professor Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob must resist calls from his party leadership and hold the next general election only after Parliament approves the soon-to-be tabled Budget 2023.
After the reality check brought about by the conviction and jailing of Datuk Seri Najib Razak for corruption and abuse of power, Umno, especially Najib’s supporters and those facing court cases for corruption, appear to have assumed a comatose state of denial, writes Professor Emeritus Datuk Dr Mohamed Ghouse Nasuruddin.
Umno’s move to get deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan to replace Khairy Jamaluddin as the candidate for the Rembau parliamentary seat in the upcoming general election is to test the health minister’s loyalty to the party, says Associate Professor Dr Azeem Fazwan Ahmad Farouk.
From wooing young voters, to new political coalitions, and the first polls following the conviction and incarceration of a former prime minister, Malaysians are in for several firsts in the upcoming, multi-million ringgit 15th General Election, says former Electoral Reform Committee (ERC) permanent member, G. Manimaran.
