BARISAN Nasional’s (BN) two-thirds majority win in the Malacca elections will benefit Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and his supporters in the party, an analyst said.

In a situation where Zahid is party president but not the prime minister, BN’s strong showing in Malacca will put the lid on Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s supporters and those who prefer Umno to work with Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Universiti Malaya’s Prof Awang Azman Awang Pawi said Zahid’s faction now has the advantage over those who criticised his leadership.

“This is good if Umno holds party polls, or when it goes into the 15th general election.

“The results of the Malacca polls also show that Zahid’s leadership is accepted by Umno grassroots.

“It gives an advantage to (his supporters) like Najib Razak and Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan,” Awang Azman told The Malaysian Insight.

Zahid’s allies within Umno were more visible in campaigning for Malacca, moving about as one team.

“In Malacca, those who were actively campaigning were from the president’s camp. It is not just seen as being relevant in national politics, but also within Umno itself,” Awang Azman said.

Those in Umno who support working with PN, which include Bersatu and PAS, include Ismail, Ketereh MP Annuar Musa, Pasir Salak MP Tajuddin Abdul Rahman, and Arau MP Shahidan Kassim.

Zahid’s group opposes any co-operation between Umno – including its BN allies – and PN for the indefinite future

Umno has postponed elections for its office bearers to after December 2022. Meanwhile, the general election, is only to be held after July next year, based on the memorandum of understanding that Ismail signed with main opposition bloc, Pakatan Harapan (PH).

GE15 sooner or later?

One view now is that following victory in Malacca, BN will push for the country to go to the polls as soon as possible.

An Umno Youth leader, Bastien Onn, believes his party should not be in a hurry to face a general election, as the Malacca results will not necessarily be repeated in national polls.

Although BN won a two-thirds majority in the Malacca assembly, low voter turnout for the elections showed that the people were currently disinterested in politics and voting.

“Give it some time, why rush the general election? Participating in democracy must also be done safely,” Bastien said, referring to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The state election saw only about 326,068 out of 495,195 eligible voters, or 65.9%, coming out to cast their ballots.

This was lower than the Election Commission’s (EC) target of a 70% turnout. By comparison, turnout was 84.7% in the 2018 general election.

Instead of rushing for a general election, Bastien said Umno should focus on party elections at the end of, or shortly after, December.

“Other political parties have been holding their own elections, they did not postpone it. Umno must show a similar example.”

Bastien also reminded Umno not to be blinded by BN’s results in Malacca, which cannot be used to predict the outcome of the next general election.

“To say the win would be an advantage to Mohamad or to the president is far-fetched. Umno won (in Malacca) because of tactical moves. We still have to work hard,” he said.

Several Umno leaders are of the view that the national poll should be held as soon as possible, believing that the people’s sentiments are favourable to BN.

Tanjung Piai Umno division chief Jeffridin Atan said BN should ride the momentum gained in Malacca.

“The mood is now for stability, the economy is getting better, and we feel this will be maintained until GE15,” he said.

“Umno should urge the government to hold an election soon, but we know this decision will be decided upon by the prime minister,” he said.

Since the Malacca polls results, Zahid, Mohamad and Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan, have publicly said that a general election should be held in the near future.

The only voice from Umno-BN to make a clear stand against holding national polls anytime soon is Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who said it would be “irresponsible” in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. – December 1, 2021.