VP race hots up, more posts eyed

The race for the Umno vice-presidency is heating up, drawing one of the biggest line-ups ever seen as members bet on an increase in the number of positions available for contest.

Party insiders tell Malaysiakini plans are afoot to expand the number of vice-presidencies in Umno from three to five to reflect the party’s rapidly growing member base, which has shot up to about 3.4 million from just under 2 million in 1989.

They said more vice-presidents were needed to represent the growing voices across the country, including those in East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.

“There is a serious attempt to review the constitution to accommodate more vice-presidents. The current number of three is not enough, we need at least five,” an Umno veteran said.

“Also, the constitution must be amended to allow representation at VP level from East Malaysia. At the moment, for example, a Sabah Umno member cannot hold VP post.”

Umno's constitution currently does not restrict Sabah or Sarawak members from becoming VPs. It is actually silent on the origin of the VPs but Malaysiakini understands that the proposed amendment would be to include wording to the effect that "at least one VP shall be from East Malaysia."

The proposal is expected to be mooted at Umno divisions, which officially began a one-month long series of meetings yesterday, preparing the ground for the party’s annual general assembly and election next March.

If the resolution is tabled and eventually endorsed at the annual congress, then this means the 25-member supreme council will commensurately be enlarged.

Delegates from 191 divisions across the country will be meeting to discuss various issues, including the tabling of resolutions and nominations for top posts such as president, deputy president and vice-presidents.

Big line up

"The vice-president's post is a very powerful one because it is from this tier that the president and deputy president are chosen from," said Mustapha Ong, a party watcher and ex-diplomat.

Next year's Umno election will see a contest for the top two posts after Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced his decision not to defend the presidency.

Meanwhile, his deputy Najib Abdul Razak has already declared his interest and may be contesting Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah for the vacancy.

Several aspirants including International Trade and Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin will slug it out for the No 2 post.

The vice presidency is the third most powerful post in the party, and successful candidates can expect an influential cabinet position.

Among those favoured to win nominations for the vice-presidency include Hishammuddin Hussein, who is giving up his Youth chief post, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who just a day dropped out from the deputy president race, Foreign Affairs Minister Rais Yatim, Sabah Umno deputy chief Shafie Apdal and former vice-president Mohd Isa Abdul Samad, who was suspended for money politics after winning the post in 2004.

Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar, Higher Education Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin, Pahang Chief Minister Adnan Yaakob, former Terengganu menteri besar Idris Jusoh and Kelantan state liaison committee chairman Annuar Musa are also eyeing the post.

Aspirants for the vice-presidency need to garner at least 19 nominations before they can stand for election next March.

Malaysiakini appends below a brief bio-data of the possible line-up so far, in strict alphabetical order:

Adnan Yaakob

The 58-year-old menteri besar of Pahang, Najib’s home state, was in the news recently for criticising Umno leaders who had made a rush for the party’s No 2 post, describing it as an unhealthy trend. A former school teacher, who graduated from Universiti Malaya, Adnan joined Umno in 1969 and served as Bentong Youth chief and division head before being appointed chief minister in 1999.

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi

The 55-year-old the Bagan Datoh MP is also minister in the Prime Minister’s Department. He was Youth chief from 1996 to 1998 and a former political secretary to Najib. When current Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim was still in Umno, Zahid was closely allied to him and briefly detained along with four members of Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia under the Internal Security Act in September 1998 for allegedly supporting Anwar’s Reformasi movement. Zahid is a graduate of Universiti Malaya.

Annuar Musa

The Kelantan liaison committee chairman, proposed by the state Youth wing for the VP post, is famous for his controversial and outspoken statements, and was at one time described as a ‘liability’ to the party - which he has fiercely denied. A former youth and sports minister, he has been expected to help win Kelantan back from the opposition. He is currently a supreme council member.

Hishammuddin Hussein

Regarded as one of the Umno aristrocracy, the 47-year-old lawyer is the son of third prime minister Hussein Onn and grandson of founding member Onn Jaafar. He was elected Youth chief in 2004, a position he has decided to relinquish. The Sembrong MP, who is also the cousin of Najib, is currently the education minister. A generally likeable and moderate personality, Hishammuddin however gained notoriety with non-Malays when he waved the keris at the Umno annual general assembly in 2005. The symbolic gesture was perceived as racist and enforcing the concept of Malay supremacy.

Idris Jusoh

A USM graduate and former corporate captain, the 53-year-old was appointed Pahang menteri besar in 2004. However the Sultan of Terengganu and current Agung, Tuanku Mizan, refused to re-appoint him this year. The Jertih state assemblyperson, who was also previously deputy entrepreneur minister, recently told reporters he would go for either a VP post or supreme council membership, depending on the nominations he received. To qualify for a supreme council seat, a candidate needs at least 10 nominations.

Mohamed Khaled Nordin

The 50-year-old minister of higher education is a law graduate of Universiti Malaya. He is also MP for Pasir Gudang and hails from the southern state of Johore, the home-state of deputy president hopeful Muhyiddin Yassin. He was formerly the minister for entrepreneur and co-operative development.

Mohd Isa Abdul Samad

The 59-year-old former Negri Sembilan strongman served as the state’s chief minister for 22 years until 2004. A former teacher and history graduate of Universiti Malaya, he won one of the three VP positions in 2004 with the highest vote count of 1,507, versus Malacca chief minister Mohd Ali Rustam’s 1,329 and Muhuyiddin’s 1,234 votes. However, Isa was suspended for money politics from Jun 24, 2005 to Jun 23, 2008. The scandal also forced the Jempol MP to resign as Federal Territories Minister in October 2005.

Rais Yatim

The 66-year-old foreign affairs minister is a lawyer by training and holds an honors degree from National University of Singapore. An Umno veteran, he has held various high-level government positions including the Negeri Sembilan chief ministership. He has held the land and regional development and information portfolios, and was first given the foreign portfolio in 1986. However he had to give it up in 1987 after falling out with ex-premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad for supporting the latter’s rival Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. In the political wilderness for more than a decade, Rais was reappointed to the cabinet in 1999.

Shafie Apdal

The 51-year-old unity, arts, culture and heritage minister is also a supreme council member. The graduate of Staffordshire University, UK, hails from Sabah and began his career in the state civil service in 1982. He has previously served as deputy housing and local government minister as well deputy defence minister. The Semporna MP is also Sabah Umno deputy chief and his decision to go for a VP's post is supported by Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman.

Syed Hamid Albar

A lawyer by training, the 64-year-old is a another second-generation Umno leader, whose father Syed Jaafar Albar was a prominent party leader. Syed Hamid is MP for Kota Tinggi in Johor and has previously served as defence minister and foreign affairs minister before being appointed home minister this year. He been sharply criticised for the role he played in last month’s shock crackdown that saw the arrest three civilians under the oppressive Internal Security Act, which allows for indefinite detention without trial.