Wednesday’s announcement by Kedah Umno leaders to oust Mukhriz Mahathir from his menteri besar post should not come as a surprise. As recently as 2014, Ahmad Said in Terengganu was replaced by Ahmad Razif Abdul Rahman.
The whole matter was sorted out in five days despite Ahmad Said being a “very vocal” menteri besar and the Sultan being seen to be neutral.
The same, however, could not be said about the mild-mannered Mukhriz, who is not as belligerent as his former Terengganu counterpart Ahmad Said, who claimed he was fired as a result of the controversy of the government’s problems with 1Malaysia Development Bhd.
Mukhriz did not spew out venom as did stubborn Ahmad, who immediately launched a tirade against the party’s decision and refused to back down.
An Umno source said Mukhriz’s (dis)position will be known next week when the Umno Supreme Council has its next meeting. “Mukhriz is in danger of losing his Supreme Council seat as well as his position as the Kedah Umno liaison chief,” the source said.
His position on the Supreme Council is by appointment, after failing to be elected vice-president in the 2014 Umno polls.
In a pre-emptive report, Umno-owned newspaper Utusan Malaysia has declared that Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah, who called the press conference about Mukhriz, has the support of party leaders and most Kedah MPs and assemblymen to be appointed as the new menteri besar.
Ahmad Bashah, the assemblyman for Bakar Bata, is currently Mukhriz’s deputy in Kedah Umno. On the eve of the 2013 general election, Ahmad Bashah was rumoured to be in line to be menteri besar, before Mukhriz received the green light.
Two others were also rumoured to be up for the job: Bukit Lada representative Ahmad Lebai Sudin and Ahmad Zaini Japar of Bukit Kayu Hitam.
However, as most political observers pointed out, the issue was a proxy war between party president and prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and his former mentor Mahathir Mohammad – Mukhriz’s father – and it can only escalate further.
Should Mukhriz be dropped from the Supreme Council, Najib will step up pressure against his deputy president, Muhyiddin Yassin, and vice-president Shafie Apdal, who are both seen in league with Mahathir.
Mukhriz’s dismissal will bring new problems for Umno
In defending his position, Mukhriz must rely on other state Kedah leaders and people who might be able to put a small dent in Najib’s plan.
Inside information received by FMT said only 54 of the 200 state assemblymen, MPs and other state leaders attended yesterday’s meeting with Najib, showing the plan has not gone as smooth as they would have liked.
Even if Ahmad Bashah takes Mukhriz’s place next week, sparks of rebellion will certaintly ignite a flaming war.
Even if Umno veterans claim such a sudden move against Mukhriz is not the best solution, what needs to be done now is to take in the views and support of the people.
Umno Veterans Club secretary Mustapha Yaakub said the move should not be made in the run-up to the 14th general election, as it could jeopardise the standing of Umno and Barisan Nasional, Berita Harian reported yesterday.
Berita Harian also quoted Zaleha Ismail, the vice-president of Mubarak, the council of former members of parliament, as saying she was saddened by the state of Kedah politics, and that the party’s image would suffer if there was no swift solution.