FORMER women, family and community development minister, and a favourite of Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Datuk Seri Rina Harun, appears to be making waves in the social media once again – this time for her nomination for the looming state polls.
“This was by accident,” she told Malay news portal Sinar Harian. “I did not mean to nominate myself as a candidate since I want to make way for other women under Perikatan Nasional (PN) or Bersatu’s Srikandi (women’s wing) but because I was asked to come forward as a candidate by the president himself, I felt obliged to.”
For that, the candidate for Batu Tiga who will be contesting against Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Danial Al Rashid Haron made it into the news.
For some reasons, the Bersatu Srikandi chief is known for her controversial comments that often-attracted brickbats from netizens.
Behaving like UMNO’s warlords, Rina had proposed during Bersatu’s annual general assembly in March this year that vernacular schools be closed down.
This was when the former deputy chief of Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Women’s wing was then schooled by Bersatu’s associate wing chief Chong Fat Full that “national unity is achieved through integration, not assimilation.”
‘Three’s Company’
If that was not enough, she also made it in the news with her appearance at Sekolah Kebangsaan Salak with a water jet trying to clean up the school after floods hit the people of Sepang in December 2021. She was not even aware that netizens could tell that the drain was “apparently clean”.
Apparently, this appears to be also the trend with both PAS election director Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor and former plantation industries and commodities minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin.
Sanusi’s popularity for the wrong reason has been acknowledged by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (PMX). Anwar had to warn him to watch every word he uttered especially if it involved the royal institution for that can be used against him.
The warning by PMX is timely as Sanusi was willing to sacrifice his own freedom in order to be seen as a party hero. Sanusi is currently being investigated for theft of the rare earth elements (REE) from his home state.
In the case of Zuraida, she made news in April 2020 – at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic during her tenure as housing and local government minister – when she defended actions of local council workers in spraying disinfection on roads in a COVID-19 hotspot.
Sanusi, Zuraida and Rina all love to hog the headlines. It makes one wonder whether creating such publicity is the way to go with campaigning for a state seat. Or, was it plain stupidity as one should realise that the stigma carries on for a long time.
Doeramon antics
Rina should realise that people have not forgotten the Doeramon episode whereby she and her ministry had to apologise to all Malaysians for her remarks.
For some time, she received a lot of brickbats when during the movement control order (MCO) at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she advised women to “not to nag (at their husbands) but instead use humour and speak in a Doraemon-like voice.”
What amazes this writer is that Rina did not even know that Doeramon is supposedly a male robotic earless cat from the 22nd century. Her ignorance is simply bizzare as she pleaded with women to imitate Doeramon’s voice.
Therefore, if she were to represent Batu Tiga voters in the Selangor legislature, one wonders what else would come out from her.
Would she just show a smiling face when she turns up late at the entrance into the state assembly, an acknowledgement that she agrees with actor Datuk Rosyam Nor who berated women for being “always late”?
Among those who chided her was Pengerang MP Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said who suggested that she dropped the word ‘Women’ from the ministry that she represented.
Come Aug 12, voters will decide whether Rina would win the hearts of the voters. The Batu Tiga constituency was once an UMNO stronghold for five terms until 2008. It was, however, wrestled by Rodziah Ismail of PH who held the state seat for the next three terms since 2008.
In 2018, Rodziah won after garnering 58.24% of the total number of votes. Most of Barisan Nasional’s (BN) votes went to PAS but this time around, Rina is facing a candidate that may be supported by voters from both PH and BN. – Aug 7, 2023
Main pic credit: HarakahDaily
