Who Will Succeed Anwar

---

 


Question: Who was the oldest prime minister of Malaysia at his first appointment? It may not be so obvious if you don’t think about it, but the answer is Anwar Ibrahim.
Dr Mahathir Mohamad holds the record for the oldest prime minister in Malaysia in his second reincarnation, and the oldest in the world at re-appointment in 2018, marking a sad saga of dependence on ageing, fading leaders.
Where is our fresh blood, when they were in abundance earlier?
Tunku was PM at 54
ADSTunku Abdul Rahman was just 54 when he became prime minister at independence, Abdul Razak Hussein was a mere 35 when he was deputy prime minister and 48 when he became the premier, becoming easily the youngest prime minister ever appointed. His successor, Hussein Onn, son of Umno founder Onn Jaafar, was 53.
Mahathir was 56 when he became prime minister, holding the reins for 22 long years. He was a ripe 78 when he stepped down in 2003, having gone through four deputies.
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi stepped down in favour of Najib Abdul Razak after a poor showing at the 2008 polls. But the duo did not recover the early closeness and rapport of the immediate post-independence era PMs and their deputies.
More importantly, never before has there been so much uncertainty over the next PM. Who will succeed Anwar when the inevitable happens and he is no longer able to hold the top position down?
The answer is indefinite, partly because after the demise of the first three prime ministers - Tunku, Abdul Razak, and Hussein - and after the ascension of the fourth, Mahathir - succession was kept almost deliberately obscure. The fear - the deputy might overthrow the incumbent.
Mahathir has four deputies
Mahathir infamously had four deputies - Musa Hitam, Abdul Ghafar Baba, Anwar, whom he ignominiously sacked in 1998, and an Anwar foe at the time, Abdullah. The first three left acrimoniously, pushed out by various means.
While previous PMs and deputies were chummy, engaged with each other and had a close and even trusting relationship, that changed gradually. It started from the 1970s when Razak took over from Tunku and increased with Mahathir’s acrimony over his deputies.
Tunku felt betrayed by Abdul Razak, and I share the analysis by many that the Tunku was forced out by young Turks in Umno, including the then more youthful and outspoken Mahathir, a radical rising star.
Anwar’s chosen deputies post-2022 election, the first time there were two, reflected a compromise choice but significantly sidelined his own party and Rafizi Ramli, who at the time was deputy president of PKR.
Rafizi was ousted from this post in a hotly disputed party election by Anwar’s daughter and former staunch Rafizi ally Nurul Izzah in May, leaving Rafizi, who also stepped down as the economy minister after the defeat, as an independent critic of the government.
If Anwar is unable to continue as prime minister now for whatever reason, the person who will naturally take over the post is deputy prime minister I, Umno’s Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, already 72 years old, and a staunch member of the old guard.
ADSPower of incumbency
And in Malaysia, the power of incumbency is rather strong, as previous PMs, probably unwanted by a majority, such as Mahathir, Muhyiddin Yassin, and Ismail Sabri Yaakob, have shown.
And as they have also shown, that would lead to considerable uncertainty as attempts to unseat them surfaced at regular intervals. It could have been avoided this time if Anwar had thought of including as deputy prime minister I, a member from his own party or coalition.
The natural choice would have been Rafizi, a tireless, long-standing campaigner for reformasi, PKR, and Anwar. Anwar gave him the toothless economy minister position and the powerful Home Ministry position to Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution ismailSaifuddin not only lost the deputy president position at PKR to Rafizi, but he also lost his parliamentary seat in the Nov 22 election.
He was made a senator and then appointed home minister, probably the first time a home minister was appointed that way - as if there were no other MPs who could have taken the position within PKR.
That was a slap in the face for Rafizi, who should have been appointed as deputy prime minister I by virtue of his deputy president position at PKR. It must have been deliberate by Anwar, which opens the PM’s position to Zahid if anything happened to him.
Is there any likelihood that PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah will ascend to become prime minister if anything happens to Anwar? Unlikely and definitely not immediately, because there is no clear succession to the top and the power of incumbency.
Former PKR deputy president Rafizi Ramli and current PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah AnwarBut if Rafizi was ensconced as deputy prime minister I, he would ascend to the top and hold it because he has the Pakatan Harapan coalition behind him. There would be stability and a clear line of succession - and that too to a younger person.
Umno leaders present and past
Rafizi is 48 now, 45 then, and it would have paved the way for younger, more competent and incorruptible ones to come to the fore, of which there are many within PKR, DAP, and Amanah.
That Anwar has not done this must indicate that he does not want this to happen and favours his old Umno chum Zahid over even his own party, PKR.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (left)That is a gross betrayal by Anwar of reformasi, PKR, and those who worked tirelessly for Umno’s defeat and Anwar’s ascendancy as PM. It must be galling that after all this, Anwar looks to someone from Umno to succeed him.
If Anwar survives - he is 78 now - into the next election, it looks unlikely that the Madani coalition will do well, as public confidence is low. Even if it does, it means the erosion of the power of the Harapan original trio of PKR, DAP, and Amanah and everything they stood for.
The prospects for Harapan and the nation, going forward, look rather gloomy. Umno leaders past and present have ensured that. They have to go - leave the stage - before this nation of ours rises anew under a leadership unyoked completely from Umno. - Mkini
P GUNASEGARAM says the past has a habit of repeating itself, until it is consciously broken.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.

---