Who Else Nazri Backs Anwar For Second Term As Pm

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INTERVIEW | Having concluded his two-year stint as Malaysia’s ambassador to the United States, Nazri Aziz is now back for good in Kuala Lumpur and has set his sights on developments closer to home ahead of the next 16th general election.
Specifically, the former six-term Padang Rengas MP said his current focus includes supporting Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and ensuring the PKR president will remain in Putrajaya after GE16.
Nazri told Malaysiakini that his support for Anwar partly stemmed from personal concerns that there are no other potential candidates for the position, including from his party, Umno.
“I’m very concerned for the country because, without Anwar, you tell me who’s going to be the prime minister.
“Sad to say our system has not allowed for grooming of intellectually good leaders who don’t play on race, religion.
“You tell me who? It’s going to be disastrous for us if Anwar is not the prime minister for another five years after 2026,” said the former law minister.
Nazri, who confirmed that he has no intentions to return to Parliament in GE16, having previously sat out of the 2022 general election, expressed fear over political uncertainties surrounding the next prime minister candidate.
Former ambassador to the United States Nazri Aziz“I’m living in fear that I don’t know who the next prime minister will be,” he said with a laugh but was quick to stress his commitment to assist Anwar.
“I will do my very best to help him (Anwar) in the next general election to the extent of going down to the ground and, you know, play a role to ensure that he will win.
“Because I’m worried. There’s no one person I can safely say that if Anwar is not there, he can take over,” said the Umno veteran who remains leading his Padang Rengas division.
With the collaboration of coalitions post GE15 to form the present Madani administration, Anwar had named Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu senior vice-chairperson Fadillah Yusof, as his two deputy prime ministers.
Umno holds 26 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, a position that Nazri noted did not provide the party with an opportunity to name a prime minister candidate.
‘Tell me who? Akmal?’
Asked whether his concerns on the lack of a potential successor for Anwar extended to within Umno, Nazri, referring to Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh, retorted, “(Can) you tell me who? Akmal? You tell me who.
“I can probably support you. But you give me one name. Even you cannot come out with a name,” he said.
The BN prime minister candidate is typically reserved for the Umno president, also the coalition’s chairperson, except Bera MP Ismail Sabri Yaakob who was an Umno vice-president when named as the ninth prime minister for 15 months between 2021 and 2022.
In a jab at Akmal, Nazri, a former Umno Youth chief, said the Merlimau assemblyperson represents only “one quarter” out of four Umno wings and so his views on various issues should not be regarded as a majority voice.
Umno Youth chief Dr Akmal Saleh“You have the Umno adult, you have Wanita, you have Puteri, you have Youth. Already Umno in Parliament has only 26 seats and this guy (Akmal) only represents a quarter of Umno.
“Should you be worried that all the Umno people think like that? Or do all the Malays think like that?”
Nazri said this when asked his views on a perception that Akmal, in comparison to Zahid, often took a stronger stance to speak up on issues that strained ties with leaders from parties in government, particularly the DAP.
‘Just ignore’
Among others, DAP Youth chief Woo Kah Leong previously urged Akmal to respect the decree of the Selangor ruler, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, regarding the controversial proposed guidelines for non-Muslim events with Muslim guests.
Akmal at the time disagreed with the prime minister’s stance that guidelines for Muslims are unnecessary, arguing that not all Muslims are fully aware of the limits when visiting non-Muslim places of worship.
“There are those who don’t agree with him (Akmal) but they will not come up and say they disagree.
“They are the silent majority [...] But to me, Umno Youth now, it’s just a small portion of the voice of the Malays. Just ignore them,” said Nazri.
On whether Umno should still work with Pakatan Harapan in GE16, Nazri reiterated that he is not in the party’s decision-making body, and so his current focus remains to support Anwar and the government. - Mkini

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