Norazuwan: We’ll upload final list tomorrow
KUALA LUMPUR: The final list of candidates eligible to contest in the upcoming Umno elections will be known tomorrow.
The confirmed list was supposed to have been out yesterday, but the party secretariat said more time was needed for stringent in-house vetting and also by the Insolvency Department.
Umno’s chief secretary of divisions Datuk Norazuwan Aziz said the checks on the credit status of candidates were necessary as the Societies Act barred bankrupts from holding any post.
“We will upload it on our website once it is done. You can then access the names of the eligible candidates,” he told reporters after balloting of the roll number for candidates was conducted yesterday.
Norazuwan said the roll number would remain the same even if some of the candidates were disqualified.
Contenders for all supreme council posts must have been either a member of the council or held one division post for at least one term.
Norazuwan said almost 23,000 candidates would be contesting for posts at the branch, division, wings and supreme council levels.
He said about 150,000 delegates from the party’s 191 divisions would be eligible to vote for the party’s leadership.
Many candidates sent representatives to obtain their roll numbers.
For the presidency, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah got the first lot, followed by Khairy Jamaluddin (2), Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (3), Mohamed Iqbal Maricair (4), Rahmat Azim Abdul Aziz (5), Rosile Saat (6) and Mohd Yusof Musa@ Jamaluddin (7).
All their numbers were drawn by their representatives, except for Mohamed Iqbal who was present.
When it came to the turn of “runaway” Sungai Besar Umno chief Datuk Seri Jamal Md Yunos, who is contesting the post of Umno Youth
chief, the crowd cheered when his name was announced.
His representative Datuk Armand Azhar Abu Hanifah drew the number on behalf of Jamal.
Armand said Jamal offered himself because he felt that Umno Youth “needed someone brave and not afraid” of facing the challenges thrown at them.
Norazuwan said Jamal was eligible to contest so long as he had not been charged with any offence.
“He is still eligible even if he does not appear personally for the Umno Youth election this Saturday as it does not affect his right as a member.
“A candidate will only lose his or her eligibility if they have been charged,” he added.