Younger leaders held back by system that favours experience, says Salleh

 Sabah Umno veteran Salleh Said Keruak says the transition to younger leadership is gradual because of entrenched party hierarchies, deeply rooted patronage networks, and concerns over potential instability.

Salleh Said Keruak says that although there is a clearer shift towards younger leadership, many states are still led by ‘experienced figures in their 60s’. (Wikipedia pic)

PETALING JAYA:

 The structure of political parties hinders younger leaders from taking over the reins of the party or heading a government, a former Sabah chief minister said.

Salleh Said Keruak said although there is a clearer shift towards younger leadership in Peninsular Malaysia – citing Amirudin Shari and Onn Hafiz Ghazi as examples – many states are still led by “experienced figures in their 60s”.

Amirudin and Onn Hafiz are the menteris besar for Selangor and Johor respectively.

Salleh said the fact that only a handful of states are led by young leaders indicates that the transition to younger leaders is gradual because of entrenched party hierarchies, deeply rooted patronage networks, and concerns over potential instability.

“The conclusion is clear. Malaysia does not lack young leaders, but the system still favours experience,” he said in a Facebook post.

However, he said, Malaysia shows elements of a balance between old and young leaders, even if it is not yet fully developed compared to other parts of the world where the political landscape is still shaped by the “old guards”.

Political figures such as Xi Jinping, Narendra Modi, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, all in their 70s, continue to dominate, Salleh said.

“Malaysia is in a phase of ‘partial transition’. Change is taking place, but it has not yet become the dominant trend.” - FMT