Khaled Nordin for Abdul Ghani as Johor MB?

The Johor BN may plunge into another round of infighting following reports that incumbent Mentri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman may be replaced in the coming general election.

Abdul Ghani, who has been in office since 1995, was said to have fallen out of favour since last two elections. However, due to royal intervention and political factors, he still managed to keep his MB post.

Recently, rumours yet again are circulating in Johor political circles that the BN may ask Abdul Ghani (left) to contest a parliamentary seat, giving away his post to Higher Education Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

The talks become even hotter after the local Chinese press reported that Johor Sultan Ibrahim Ismail made a surprise appearance at Khaled Nordin's Hari Raya open house in Johor.

This, according to the reports, is a "meaningful sign" from royal person.

Sultan Ibrahim succeeded his father Sultan Iskandar Ismail in January 2010. The late sultan is said to have had better relations with Abdul Ghani.

Johor has been the BN and Umno stronghold for decades. But it is also a well-known fact that there are many forces within Johor Umno.

It is said that Prime Minister and Umno President Najib Abdul Razak plans to place his supporter in the state in an effort to rein in his deputy, Muhyiddin Yassin.

The local press has listed a few names as potential candidates to replace Abdul Ghani aside from Khaled Nordin (right). Among them are Pulai MP Nur Jazlan Mohamad, Deputy Defence Minister Abdul Latiff Ahmad and Pasir Raja state assembly person Adham Baba.

But the BN must learn a lesson from what happened to former Penang chief minister Koh Tsu Koon.

Pakatan won't take it easy

When contacted, State DAP chief Dr Boo Cheng Hau agrees that the issue may ignite another round of infighting within Johor Umno, perhaps repeating Koh's mistake.

He was referring to the chaos in Penang Gerakan in the wake of the 2008 election when Koh decided to contest a parliamentary seat, without naming his successor to the CM's office.

"There is the possibility of infighting (in Umno), but we cannot say whether there will be any sabotage, because we don't know how strong the dissatisfaction is," Boo said.

While agreeing that Umno infighting can boost Pakatan Rakyat's chances of taking over the state, he pointed out that the coalition will still need to sweat it out to ensure victory.

"Some of our leaders appear to be arrogant after the 2008 election. We need to work hard and shouldn't rely on BN weaknesses to win the state," he said.

Johor PAS commissioner Mahfodz Mohamed also said that regardless of the Umno MB candidate for the MB post , Pakatan will continue its campaign to challenge the BN.

He said the people will not change their perception of Umno even if Khaled Nordin took over from Abdul Ghani.

This, he said, is because BN policies will remain same.

"Abdul Ghani may have done many mistakes, that's why the BN wants to change people now. But Khaled is also from Umno... to us they are all same."