Syed Saddiq won't contest to reclaim Muda presidency

 

Muda founder Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman will not return to lead the party.

In a statement today, Syed Saddiq said he won’t contest in the party’s first-ever leadership election, citing his ongoing corruption case at the Federal Court.

“I still hold firmly to the principle that Muda and Malaysia deserve leadership that is whiter than white.

“Until my name is fully and finally cleared, it would be wrong for me to seek any position that could distract, divide, or derail the movement we started together,” he said.

Syed Saddiq is facing four charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), misappropriation of property, and money laundering linked to RM1.12 million of Bersatu Youth funds.

He was first convicted by the High Court, but later acquitted by the Court of Appeal.

The Muar MP had stepped down as Muda president after the initial conviction in 2023, and the party has since been helmed by its only other elected representative, Puteri Wangsa assemblyperson Amira Aisya Abdul Aziz.

Since then, he has continued to serve as an active MP, but spends much of his time as a social media influencer.

Without Syed Saddiq’s leadership, the party has lost much of its momentum in recent years, with its last electoral foray being the six state elections in which it failed to win any seats and lost all its deposits.

Amira has also steered the party closer to Perikatan Nasional, being part of the Ikatan Prihatin Rakyat loose coalition headed by Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin.

Muda will have its first party election on March 14.

‘Nobody’s bigger than the party’

Syed Saddiq, in his statement today, stressed that the party is not a personal vehicle for him.

“Muda is bigger than me. No individual is bigger than the party. And no party is bigger than Malaysia.

“With humility, I take a step back so that Muda can move forward,” he said. - Mkini