Mukhriz has already gained the endorsement of his father, Dr Mahathir, to be Kedah MB. — File pic
Several assemblymen contacted by The Malaysian Insider said that Mukhriz did not possess an advantage as former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s son or as the international trade and industry deputy minister, pointing out that administering the northern state differed from administration at the federal level.
“His status as the son of a prime minister is not a guarantee,” Bukit Kayu Hitam assemblyman Datuk Ahmad Zaini Japar told The Malaysian Insider.
“Voters now can get information easily and they make wise choices,” he added.
Apart from Mukhriz, the only other sons of prime ministers who are lawmakers are Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his cousin Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein.
Asked if Mukhriz, who is also the Kedah Umno deputy liaison chief, had the credibility and ability to administer Kedah should Barisan Nasional (BN) wrest the state from PAS, Ahmad Zaini said that state and federal politics were different.
“Just because he holds a federal post doesn’t mean that he can handle state administration. The patterns are completely different,” he said.
Mukhriz had dismissed yesterday rumours of his candidacy as Kedah mentri besar, saying BN needed to win the state in Election 2013 before discussing the post.
“We need to win the state first, then only we can talk about who will be appointed... I’m afraid that this kind of talk is premature and speculative because our focus is to win the state,” he said, adding BN had a good chance in recapturing Malaysia’s rice bowl state.
Guar Chempedak assemblyman Datuk Ku Abdul Rahman Ku Ismail did not explicitly object to Mukhriz’s candidacy as Kedah mentri besar, but pointed out that the rumours were strange as it was the Kedah Umno liaison chief and state BN chairman who would traditionally score the candidacy.
“But we don’t know if Prime Minister (Datuk Seri) Najib Razak will make a surprise; the final decision is in his hands,” Ku Abdul Rahman told The Malaysian Insider.
Datuk Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah replaced former mentri besar Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid as the Kedah Umno liaison chief after BN lost the state in Election 2008, while Mukhriz was appointed as Ahmad Bashah’s deputy.
Kuah assemblyman Datuk Nawawi Ahmad, who is in the Kedah Umno liaison committee, said that he would not side with anyone, but pointed out that Umno members were loyal to Ahmad Bashah.
“It’s difficult for me to comment on who deserves to be mentri besar. Both of them have their own abilities, but what is important is to be loyal to the current leadership and to ensure that Kedah can be taken back,” he said.
Rumours about Mukhriz’s candidacy as mentri besar of Kedah have swirled for years, with Dr Mahathir expressing support for his son if nominated for the candidacy.
A Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) survey published last July, which polled 10,800 respondents in Kedah, revealed that 69 per cent backed Mukhriz as mentri besar candidate, compared to 12 per cent for Ahmad Bashah.
Sources said that Mukhriz’s support may be due to his status as Dr Mahathir’s son and for being more educated than Ahmad Bashah.
They also said that Mukhriz may contest in the Ayer Hitam and Seputeh state constituencies in the event of sabotage at the state level, besides defending his current Jerlun parliamentary seat.
BN won 14 out of 36 state seats, while PR won 22 state seats with PAS sweeping 16 seats in Election 2008.
BN only won four out of 15 parliamentary seats in Kedah in the historic 2008 election that saw the ruling coalition lose its customary two-thirds parliamentary majority.
Kedah has 1,025,930 voters in all state constituencies, based on the Election Commission (EC) electoral roll last November.
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