Zahid dismisses reports of Pakatan taking Muar
MUAR: Reports that the Opposition will wrest Muar from Barisan Nasional are inaccurate, said Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
“I have received all kinds of reports saying this and that but when I step into Muar, I can see that the reports are untrue,” he told a gathering of ruling coalition members and supporters here yesterday.
The Barisan deputy president, while not mentioning names or parties, took a swipe at Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia’s Muar candidate Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, who is contesting against Barisan incumbent Datuk Razali Ibrahim and Abdul Aziz Talib of PAS.
“As great as he may be at debating, that does not mean he can serve the rakyat here,” Dr Ahmad Zahid said.
Syed Saddiq, 25, the winner of three awards as Asia’s top debater, is hopeful about unseating Razali, who defeated PKR’s Nor Hizwan Ahmad by 1,646 votes in GE13.
Dr Ahmad Zahid also took a dig at Pribumi president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
“There was someone who initially wanted to contest here.
“However, he did not dare to do so and ended up going back to his original area,” he said.
Muhyiddin initially said he was willing to contest in Muar, but later opted to defend his Pagoh parliamentary seat against Barisan’s Ismail Mohamed and PAS’ Ahmad Nawfal Mahfodz.
In his speech, Razali said after stopping campaigning work at midnight, the Barisan machinery would focus on ensuring that voters got to their polling stations early to cast their ballots.