Dons: Division chiefs still very much call the shots in party

PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s success in winning the top post in Umno is not surprising despite calls for change by some party members.

“Preliminary result indicates that while the majority of Umno members voted for change, many of the division chiefs kept their faith with Ahmad Zahid,” said Assoc Prof Dr Muhamad Takiyuddin Ismail, a UKM political scientist.

He said Umno’s decision to adopt the electoral college system during its party polls gave the added advantage to the division chiefs.

Dr Ahmad Zahid was elected the eighth Umno president early Sunday morning, defeating former Youth and Sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin and party veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.

Former Negri Sembilan mentri besar Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, popularly known as “Tok Mat” won the deputy president’s post while Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid and Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin were elected vicepresidents.

Prof Muhammad Takiyuddin said Umno’s mainstream and dele gates wanted someone like Dr Ahmad Zahid to helm the party.

“However, Tok Mat’s selection as the deputy president is refreshing due to his popularity,” he said.

On Tengku Razaleigh, who is known as “Ku Li” and Khairy’s defeat, Prof Muhammad Takiyuddin said the delegates did not give Tengku Razaleigh strong support as they felt that he did not represent fresh thinking or new ideas.

“Ku Li is way behind his time while Khairy, on the other hand, is way ahead of his time,” he added.

At the vicepresident level, Prof Muhammad Takiyuddin said the newlyelected president needed his “trusted lieutenants” to face the challenges ahead.

“That is why the party elected Mahdzir and Ismail Sabri, who are seen as being in Dr Ahmad Zahid’s team. The selection comes with the package,” he said.

Political analyst Dr Muhammad Asri Mohd Ali from Universiti Malaya, said the results showed that the party delegates preferred familiar faces at the top level.

“Even at the supreme council level, we can still see the same faces, including Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed and Datuk Rosnah Abdul Rashid Shirlin.”

He believed that a considerable amount of former party president Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s supporters preferred status quo.

“It shows that the division chiefs still play a big role in party polls,” he said.