Tajuddin’s political career in tatters
Pasir Salak MP’s downfall a lesson for umno’s old guard.
IT has been a stunning fall from grace for one of Umno’s fiercest and most ambitious politicians.
The firestorm that consumed Pasir Salak MP Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman raged on for almost 24 hours before it ended with his termination as Prasarana Malaysia Bhd non-executive chairman.
His disastrous press conference in the wake of Monday’s LRT train collision drew so much outrage that his tenure in the body that owns and operates the service was no longer tenable.
The sacking came like a bolt of lightning and it was quite clear that order came from a level much higher than the Finance Ministry.
The storm is not over because Tajuddin is now being investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
His supporters have accused the Perikatan Nasional government of political persecution because he has been a vocal critic of the Prime Minister and his party.
Tajuddin, 73, is well regarded in his Perak constituency where he is like some sort of benevolent “Raja of Pasir Salak” to his constituents.
He has his finger in a lot of pies and his family runs a college in Ipoh bearing his nickname: TAJ International College.
He is also credited with forming Muafakat Nasional because he was the first to bring PAS and Umno together in a joint ceramah in Pasir Salak.
But opinion within Umno has not rallied around him. Umno chatgroups are also appalled by what happened but have been generally “polite” with many telling him to bersabar (be patient).
Besides, many are wary of his hot temper.
He can be very abrasive but is quite thin-skinned when criticised.
He recently called an Umno division chief from Kedah bodoh (stupid) when the latter posted critical social media news about Tajuddin in their chatgroup.
Tajuddin is in deep trouble and social media is picking on everything about him.
Pictures of his properties in the upscale Bukit Damansara neighbourhood have gone viral and the comments are not flattering.
“This type of attitude is no longer acceptable in current times. What he did affected people at so many levels.
“It was embarrassing for Prasarana but he is also an MP and an Umno supreme council member.
“When people look at him, they see Umno – and when they see Umno, they think of him.
“That is not good for a party trying to make a comeback,” said political commentator Dr Azmi Omar.
Azmi said the unfortunate episode also called into question the quality of our legislators and leaders.
“It is time for people like that to go. I’m sorry. He gets no sympathy from me. He should realise that his actions hurt the party,” said former Kapar Umno division chief Datuk Faizal Abdullah.
Personalities like Tajuddin used to be popular among the Umno base. They were seen as jantan (macho), willing to stand up for the party and take on Umno’s enemies.
An Umno leader from Pahang said although Tajuddin only had himself to blame for the blunder, it was social media that sent him crashing.
Many leaders in Umno have not caught up with the changes sweeping through society and the way social media shapes the way the public think and consume information. They are not in sync with the times.
“People like them are the old Umno, the Umno that voters rejected. If they refuse to go, Umno will never move forward.
“We waste so much time defending people who damage the party,” said an aide to a mentri besar.
Some in Umno even joke – privately, of course – that the Prime Minister did Umno a favour by showing Tajuddin the door.
Azmi said that if there was a lesson for Umno leaders to take away from this fiasco, it was that they should do their work seriously if they intend to stay in government.
“You are part of the government, play your part. Look at Khairy (Jamaluddin). I have never been a fan of Khairy but I am looking at him differently.
“I can see he takes his work seriously, he is up to date with his facts and has shown maturity in handling difficult situations,” said Azmi, referring to the minister in charge of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme.
He also singled out a recent incident that went viral showing Khairy listening and speaking patiently as a woman went through a litany of complaints at the top of her voice while her elderly mother was being vaccinated.
The chatter in some political circles is that former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak may have done Tajuddin a disfavour by speaking on the latter’s behalf in a Facebook post as calls for Tajuddin to resign escalated.
Najib tried to explain that his “long-time friend” Tajuddin regretted what had happened and intended to apologise.
However, his conclusion that Tajuddin would only resign when the supreme council orders Umno politicians to vacate government positions was a tad cocky and must have rubbed Putrajaya the wrong way.
The termination letter arrived at Tajuddin’s house within hours of Najib’s Facebook post. They had not even bothered to give him a chance to resign.
Was it a not-so-gentle reminder from up there about who the Prime Minister is?
It is no secret dream is to end minister.
He has fought hard to be where he is today. He was arrested under the Internal Security Act during Operation Lalang, briefly sacked from Umno for alleged money politics and fought former Perak mentri besar Tan Sri Ramli Ngah Talib for control of Pasir Salak.
He was alleged to have spent so much money in one party election that he was dubbed the “six million dollar man”, a sobriquet he does not appreciate even though he has a reputation for using offensive terms in Parliament.
Tajuddin’s career has nosedived. He does not need the Prasarana job but the MACC probe is something else altogether.
It could lead to charges in court and end his dream to be a minister. that Tajuddin’s his career as a
The views expressed here are the writer’s own.