PAGOH — Under Barisan Nasional (BN) Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was a respected figure in Johor — first serving as its mentri besar between 1986 and 1995, and later as a Cabinet member, and even deputy prime minister.
Since being sacked from Umno two years ago, he has been trying to reconnect with his constituents here, old and new — but this time from the other side of the political divide, as the president of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM).
Among those who have embraced Muhyiddin’s new role in the Opposition was the ethnic Chinese community, Malay Mail has observed.
One of Muhyiddin’s new fans was a 70-year-old man who only wished to be known as Tay Hock. He admitted he had not thought highly of Muhyiddin when he was education minister.
“He was going back and forth on the UEC back then and we were getting sick of it. But that is the past; now I am glad to see that he has seen the error of his ways and genuinely wants to contribute to building a better country,” he said, referring to the Unified Examination Certificate.
For 36-year-old Tee Kok Ming, Muhyiddin crossing over to PH has been an eye-opener for Johor voters, who have in the past been loyal supporters of the government.
“I’m confident his actions will be an eye opener for voters in Johor. Many will see that he speaks of legitimate concerns of the people and wants things to change for the better,” he said.
Fervent support for the local boy
Muhyiddin was born in Muar and grew up there. He is now helping his Youth wing chief Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman campaign in the federal seat.
But ironically, the biggest support there has been for Muhyiddin himself, with many of the Malay voters still feeling indebted to him for his previous achievements, especially as mentri besar.
His Monday ceramah in Parit Nawi, near Muar, was only attended by around 200 people — mostly Malays.
Parit Nawi is considered a BN stronghold, with its district polling centre registering 80 per cent votes to BN compared to the Opposition in 2013.
But those who attended were no less ecstatic over Muhyiddin’s calls for reform.
Mohd Naim Abd Razak, 53, said he would have never imagined that PH would have gained any sort of traction in rural Muar.
“It is quite amazing to see the people turning out just to see him speak. Although I too have doubts about PH on many issues, I have to give him the benefit of the doubt and at the very least, listen to what Tan Sri has to say,” he said, referring to Muhyiddin.
Pagoh support not as rosy
In his own constituency of Pagoh, however, local village chiefs painted the opposite picture, citing that support for Umno has largely not faced a dramatic shift.
A village chief in Lenga, who wished to be known only as Ahmad, said he acknowledged Muhyiddin’s efforts in the district, but all that could only be done because he was still with the government then.
“Of course, we appreciate and fell indebted to what he has done especially his contribution to the Pagoh Education Hub and making Pagoh as of the stops for the High-Speed Rail Link.
“You cannot deny that he has done much but that was because he held various position in the government before,” he said.
Going against Muhyiddin in Pagoh is his former deputy in Umno Pagoh, 44-year-old Ismail Mohamed, and Ahmad Nawfal Mahfodz from PAS.
Out of respect, Ismail has refrained from going after his former mentor, with repeated advice to his election machinery not to condemn or provoke the other side.
Voters wary of turncoats
The reason? Another village chief, who called himself Tareef, said Pagoh voters have learned their lesson during the split of Semangat 46 from Umno in the 1980s.
Tareef explained that none of the people in Pagoh are hostile or bear any ill-will towards their incumbent MP.
“Those were dark days when Tan Sri Othman Saad went against then-party president Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. We were divided even among our own communities, with some neighbours not even talking to each other.
“However, despite what has happeedn in the past few years, any of us here would welcome Tan Sri to our house at any given time. It is in our best interests to be civil and ensure that the channels remain open,” he said.
Back then, it was Muhyiddin who had kept his faith in Umno and went against Othman when the latter joined Semangat 46, Tareef explained.
“Even then, we understood that the party must come first. Umno’s struggles must be put above individual needs,” explained the village chief.
Another village chief in Bukit Kepong who wished to remain anonymous said any votes that Muhyiddin would get could only be considered pity votes, as many felt that he crossed the line when he joined the Opposition.
“Before he was sacked, Muhyiddin had promised that we would not go against the party regardless of what happened but after he was sacked, he abandon Umno outright.
“Muhyiddin would have our undivided support still if he had taken a step back or even joined an NGO. But what we cannot comprehend is him crossing over to the Opposition,” he said.
Najib tipping the scales for voters torn between Umno, Muhyiddin
In Pagoh, the battle between Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin and his former disciple, Pagoh Umno deputy division chief Ismail Mohamed, is leaving voters torn.
Tucked a kilometre behind an industrial park with numerous furniture factories, near the banks of the Muar river lies the small village of Kampung Pergam.
In 2013, the village had voted overwhelmingly in support of Muhyiddin and BN, with 186 votes in favour of the ruling coalition, while PAS only bagged 30 votes. A few years later, Muhyiddin contributed funds for the renovation of the local mosque.
But now that Muhyiddin and BN have parted ways, villagers find themselves faced with a difficult choice.
“Both Muhyiddin and Ismail have done a lot for Pagoh. We feel conflicted having to make a choice,” a villager who wished to be known as Atan told Malaysiakini, his friend and fellow 60-something year old Amber nodding in agreement.
Amber said he was also “50-50” on making a choice, as were many of their friends in the village.
Najib the tiebreaker
But while Atan is undecided between Muhyiddin and Ismail, there does appear to be a tiebreaker in the form of Umno president Najib Abdul Razak, whom the retiree labelled as “useless” due to his many scandals.
He also voiced objection to the GST, reiterating views of some Islamic scholars that it was ‘haram’ and that supporting Najib was tantamount to colluding with the implementation of the tax.
Similar sentiments against Najib were expressed by others, such as army veteran Mohd Nasir Abdullah, 58, who is now a staunch Muhyiddin supporter.
“We don’t want to disturb Umno, but we want Najib gone,” the Pagoh native and former BN supporter said when met in Bukit Gambir.
Party over candidate
But the choice between Muhyiddin and Ismail isn’t so difficult for others.
“For old timers like me it’s easy, we see the dacing (scales) and we cross that… That is the good and easy choice,” a Kampung Pergam villager who wished to be known as Ahmad said.
It is such sentiments that Ismail is banking on to help defeat his former master.
“I see that they still choose the party. For the people of Pagoh, when an individual is in BN we respect him, but once he leaves they will choose the party,” Ismail told Malaysiakini.
Pagoh is not the only seat Muhyiddin is contesting. Across the Muar river in Ledang, the former deputy prime minister is also vying for Gambir – a state seat BN won in 2013 with just 310 votes.
Johor Bersatu secretary Othman Sapian told Malaysiakini that Muhyiddin had decided not to contest in one of Pagoh’s two state seats to make way for others.
Gambir then, was deemed close enough to Pagoh that he could manage both.
“Also the Ledang MP is a caretaker deputy minister (Hamim Samuri), so Muhyiddin contesting there can help our Pakatan Harapan partners,” Othman said.
Hamim is well liked in Ledang, and even some opposition supporters such as a former PAS man who wished to be known as Wak Don said he is a “good person.”
The Muhyiddin factor
Faced with a popular incumbent, PKR’s candidate for Ledang, Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh, is certainly hoping that some of Muhyiddin’s influence will rub off on his campaign.
“I think Muhyiddin contesting in Gambir can have an impact among the Malays, people are talking about him contesting in Gambir even though they are in Serom.
“but we still need to go to the ground and meet the people and convince them to vote for us,” Syed Ibrahim told Malaysiakini.
While Harapan supporters feel capturing rural BN strongholds in Gambir – such as the village of Sagil – may be tough, Muhyiddin seems to be a popular choice in more urban areas, such as Bukit Gambir,
Trader Hamid Husnan, 60, an opposition supporter who previously voted for PAS in the last polls, said one advantage Muhyiddin has over three-term BN incumbent M Asojan is former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s patronage.
“When Asojan fights with Muhyiddin, people will look at Muhyiddin, because they see he is under Mahathir,” Hamid said.
However it is unclear if Muhyiddin’s influence can extend into the neighbouring state seats under Ledang, especially semi-rural Serom.
One Umno veteran from Kesang Tasek, who declined to be named, believed that in urban areas of Serom, change can happen and that Muhyiddin will contribute to it.
“People now have had their minds opened, change can happen. People now are facing so much hardships because of the current government,” he said.
‘He never did anything here’
But deep in the rural heart of Serom, this is less clear.
At a coffee shop in the Kampung Serom 5 Ulu, a 10-minute drive away from the main trunk road in Serom, three staunch BN supporters vent their dislike for Muhyiddin.
“He never did anything for Ledang when he was menteri besar, it was only when Ghani Othman took over did Ledang develop,” said Mohd Talha Sureb, 58.
His friend Hamzah Samsudin, 66, added that Muhyiddin had only focused his development efforts on Muar.
Serom 5 Ulu is part of the Serom 5 polling district that gave BN 295 votes and only 43 votes to PKR in 2013.
Meanwhile, in the fishing village of Kampung Teluk Kemang, villagers said Umno was the dominant political party, but they were unsure if the ruling Malay party could win the polls.
Fisherman Kadir Musa, 56, however, said that any winds of change will not be brought by Muhyiddin.
“He is influential in Pagoh, not here,” Kadir said.
Kampung Teluk Kemang is part of the Kampung Pantai Layang polling district, which gave BN 398 votes, and PKR 297 in 2013.
‘PAS can’t win’
In both seats he is contesting, the Bersatu president will be facing PAS third contestant, namely PAS ulama chief Mahfodz Mohamed in Gambir, and his son Ahmad Nawfal in Pagoh.
PAS is the traditional challenger in much of the Malay heartland, and retains a strong core of grassroots supporters.
In Pagoh, the PAS scored 13,432 votes against Muhyiddin in 2013.
Mahfodz, meanwhile, almost won Gambir that year trailing behind BN by just 310 votes.
However, many attribute this near victory for the PAS ulama chief to support from non-Malays and other opposition parties at the time.
“When DAP did not contest here (in 2013) their supporters, the urbanites and non-Malays, voted for PAS,” trader Hamid said.
One PAS supporter in Sagil, who declined to be named, was not confident of Mahfodz’s chances.
“Mahfodz can put up a fight, but I don’t think he can win,” he said.
60 percent of Gambir voters are Malay, 37 percent Chinese, and four percent Indian.
MALAY MAIL / MKINI
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