Simpang Renggam PKR division chief Maszlee Malik has indicated his willingness to debate caretaker Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi ahead of the upcoming state election.
Maszlee, who is Pakatan Harapan’s candidate for the Puteri Wangsa state seat, was responding to a poster uploaded on Facebook.
“With all humility and respect, grounded on the practices and principles of democracy, I accept this invitation/challenge.
“God willing, together we will make this debate/dialogue space a vehicle to educate the people and promote a mature political culture,” said the former education minister on Facebook today.
The poster featuring AI-generated images of Maszlee (above) and Onn was uploaded by writing coach Harris Nasril. It included the text “Debat Perdana PRN Johor” as well as the Harapan and BN logos, giving it an air of legitimacy.
Maszlee, the former Simpang Renggam MP, also jokingly expressed appreciation for the poster “giving him more hair”.
When contacted, Harris told Malaysiakini that there was no actual debate challenge from Onn, who is the Johor BN chief and incumbent for Machap.
Instead, he said he raised the debate idea on Facebook this morning, hoping one would be organised between the two politicians.
“There is no (debate) organiser. I raised the idea that the two of them should debate.
“I did not expect Maszlee to accept,” he said.
Johor polls to see crowded contests
Johor expects to see multi-cornered contests on July 11 as BN and Harapan face off in all 56 seats, while uncertainty clouds Perikatan Nasional after PAS ended political ties with Bersatu.
Other contenders that have announced their candidacies ahead of the June 27 nomination day include Muda in an alliance with Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), as well as Parti Bersama Malaysia.
Muda president Amira Aisya Abdul Aziz, who is the Puteri Wangsa incumbent, will not be defending the seat, which will instead be contested by her aide Rashifa Aljuneid.
Johor Amanah chairperson Aminolhuda Hassan said his party agreed to make way for PKR to contest Puteri Wangsa after several rounds of negotiation.
The seat became a point of contention after Muda parted ways with Harapan, and Amanah was the first to signal its intention to reclaim the constituency it had “given up” in the 2022 state election. - Mkini
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