Leaving Khairy out in the cold for GE15 will hurt Umno's prospects, analysts predict
Neutral voters will view Umno more dimly in the 15th general election if they suspect its factional politics to be responsible for Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin having to run an impossible race or abstain entirely, according to analysts.
On Sunday, Khairy confirmed that Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, who is the Rembau Umno division chief, has asked him to make way. While he said he would comply, the request so close to the general election could leave him without an alternative to contest.
Political analysts said the move could be seen as Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s retaliation against Khairy and other party leaders who were not immediately obeying his wishes.
Universiti Sains Malaysia political scientist Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid also observed latent hostility in Khairy and Mohamad’s remarks about the musical chairs in Rembau, which he said signalled strained relations within the Malay nationalist party.
“If this is the type of public statements they keep on issuing, Umno shouldn’t blame the public then if people speculate about the internal power play that’s developing among different Umno factions and personalities,” he told Malay Mail.
Ahmad Fauzi argued that Khairy represented the future of Umno and has even been touted as a possible candidate to be prime minister, indicating his appeal among sections of Malaysia that did not traditionally support Umno. Read More...
