“Perhaps not as next Johor MB but black school shoe Maszlee fits the bill as Education Minister”

 

SUCH was the view of his fanbase after Dr Maszlee Malik who is synonymous with the wearing of black school shoes was rumoured to be “among the strongest candidates being prepared by PKR to be the future Menteri Besar (MB) in the run-up to the Johor state election”.

This would effectively mean the former one-term Simpang Renggam MP making a return to his short-lived education ministership tenure (2018-2020) following the Sheraton Move and eventual rise-to-power of the backdoor Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration helmed by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Such prospect came about after the then Bersatu lawmaker who is now a PKR Central Leadership Council (MPP) shot down the rumour as inaccurate and “NOT INTERESTED! Thank you ”.

On a more serious note, Maszlee who is also the PKR Simpang Renggam division head was named by Malay language news portal AM Daily – probably in a test waters maneuverer – as Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) “key weapon” to create a new wave in the state.

“Maszlee is seen as having the complete package as a modern  political figure who is not only experienced at the national level, but also has an intellectual, boasting clean image and is close to the rakyat,” justified AM Daily citing sources.

“With his academic background and experience as a cabinet minister, he is said to have high credibility to lead Johor in the new and increasingly challenging political environment.”

Questionable leadership quality

Beyond that, the Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia chairman since 2023 is also deemed as capable “to give voters confidence that PH has a clearer leadership plan for Johor”.

“His presence is said to be able to trigger a “big wave” especially in urban and semi-urban areas which have previously been a battleground for fierce competition between PH, BN (Barisan Nasional) and PN.”

Despite Maszlee’s denial, the AM Daily post which has garnered 3.2K likes, 1.3K comments and 133 shares at the time of writing has somehow shed light into the contemporary state of Johor  politics.

First and foremost is the fact that incumbent UMNO-backed Johor MB Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi, 47, is still a formidable and well-liked figure in the state.

This is when one commenter expressed disbelief that “the black shoe or white shoe guy wants to be MB?”

Again, the take is that “the present MB is very efficient and effective” with another commenter reckoning that Maszlee “must be day-dreaming”.

Beyond that, detractors urged Johorians to unite “to reject PH in GE16 (16th General Election)” besides Johor being a known “UMNO’s strong fortress”.

Moreover, insofar as election promises are concerned, there are still promises that Maszlee has not delivered from GE14 which is “to scrap the Simpang Renggam toll”.

Editor’s Note: Maszlee failed to defend his parliamentary seat in GE15 when he lost to UMNO’s Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad in a four-corner fight which also featured Bersatu and Pejuang.

The best comment is perhaps this one by Maszlee’s former senior staffer who disputed the Universiti Cyberjaya’s Psychology and Social Science Faculty professor’s leadership quality.

Claiming to have “arranged everything from taking care of the constituency when he (Maszlee) was an MP and Bersatu minister to the Bersatu party elections”, the aide jibed:

He’s the type to sit back, hoping everything will be settled for him. He’s only good in theory but a laggard in practice. So there’s no need to promote him to become MB.

Oops, wait. Putting him as MB candidate is useless. Confirm he can’t win. Hahaha. 

- Focus malaysia