A tale of two ex-veeps
Hafiz Yatim | Oct 1, 09 1:32pm
Two former Umno vice-presidents who won the 2004 party elections stood alongside each
other on stage on Tuesday as thousands in Port Dickson waited anxiously for the
announcement of the BN candidate for the Bagan Pinang by-election.
T HE two were Isa Samad, who
garnered the highest number of
votes, and Muhyiddin Yassin, who was
then the number three vice-president.
Muhyiddin announced Isa's candidature for
the by-election to an ecstatic crowd. The
nomination day is this Saturday.
Isa is seeking to rebuild his disgraced career
after he was suspended for three years for
money politics during the fateful 2004 party
elections.
Muhyiddin, as we all know rose to become
Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy
President in Umno and Barisan Nasional.
This is despite Muhyiddin being one of the
most vocal critics of former Prime Minister
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's team.
isa samad bagan pinang 02One is reminded
of Isa's winning speech at the Umno
assembly when he won the 2004 vice-
presidency.
He said: "Those who took my money and
voted for me it is good. Those who took it and
did not vote, we will see each other later on
the 'akhirat' day (day of reckoning)".
A tale of two ex-veeps
At a recent 'ceramah' PKR election director
Saifuddin Nasution, who was once from
Umno, said he had heard Isa, after winning
the vice-presidency, telling his alma mater
school (Sekolah Alam Shah), who wanted
some donations, that he had finished most of
his campaign funds in the party election.
Isa, 59, wearing an all blue baju Melayu at
the announcement of his candidacy, will be
contesting against Negeri Sembilan Pas
commissioner Zulkefly Mohd Omar, and
possibly an independent candidate with PKR,
Teluk Kemang committee member Shahruddin
Abd Hamid.
Mounting pressure
This will be the ninth by-election since the
March 8, 2008 general election, which saw BN
winning only one seat in Batang Ai. BN lost 4
seats, which are the Kuala Terengganu, Bukit
Gantang parliamentary, Manek Urai and
Permatang Pasir seats respectively, to PAS.
Certainly, another defeat to PAS would mean
that Umno is losing its Malay hegemony as it
would send signals that the Islamist party is
taking over its role in representing the
Malays.
Hence, with mounting pressure to win and
coupled with strong demands from Umno
Teluk Kemang, the Umno leadership had
chosen a sure bet in Isa despite his tainted
past and strong disapproval from former
premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad (below), who
had once considered Isa his blue-eyed boy.
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Isa's candidacy in the Bagan Pinang by-
election is seen by many as an attempt to
bring him back into Umno politics. Other than
leading the Teluk Kemang Umno division,
which he had helmed since 1982, Isa has not
been making any inroads following his six-
year suspension which was subsequently
reduced to three years.
He failed to regain the vice-presidency at this
year's Umno contest and last year, Isa was
not even selected to contest in any state or
parliamentary seats. In other words, he was
in political oblivion and no longer in
mainstream Umno politics.
Reversal of fortune
However, come Saturday, it may see a
reversal in Isa's position as Umno will be
depending on this former Negeri Sembilan
Menteri Besar, who had led the state for more
than two decades, to revive Umno and BN's
dwindling fortunes.
A tale of two ex-veeps
It remains to be seen, what will happen if Isa
wins and the implications of it on present
Menteri Besar Mohammad Hassan (Pix left).
mohammad hassan negeri sembilan
mbMuhyiddin, being the deputy president will
now be leading BN's charge to ensure a
victory for the coalition. In other words,
Muhyiddin will be the campaigning manager
to ensure his former rival, Isa, wins.
This is the second Umno/BN seat which it is
trying to defend in by-elections as earlier in
the year it lost the Kuala Terengganu seat
which it won at last year's general election.
Certainly, having a full backing of the whole
party machinery is an added bonus. There
were earlier fears of a possible boycott when
banners were put-up on Tuesday suggesting
such a move if Isa was not selected.
However, the boycott would certainly not
materialise with Isa's selection. He will
receive the backing of the 4,000 plus postal
votes, along with the votes of his relatives,
who are also said to be residents there.
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