BARISAN Nasional (BN) chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that loyalty to the party and closing ranks are more important than whining about not being nominated as a candidate for the forthcoming 15th General Election (GE15).
In a Facebook post the incumbent Bagan Datuk MP warned former MPs who were not chosen as candidates against directly or indirectly betraying the party as this will show their “true colours towards the party”.
“If this happens, it means they are ungrateful because they have been relevant and holding positions while they were under the UMNO and BN party ticket,” he remarked.
He urged those who were not picked to adopt the right attitude and accept the decision as they had been given numerous leadership opportunities in the past.
He further warned those who were not nominated to not provoke dissatisfaction, anger, protest, slander, sabotage, close operation centres or issue statements that might damage the party’s reputation.
Zahid had unveiled the coalition’s candidates for Peninsular Malaysia last night, with the list containing a number of fresh faces. Several long-serving MPs were notably missing from the list.
BN’s list of candidates for Peninsular Malaysia – which Zahid had revealed last night – contained a number of new faces with the names of several long-serving MPs who held ministerial positions notably missing from the list.
Those who were not on the list include caretaker Communication and Multimedia minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa (Ketereh), caretaker Science, Technology and Innovation minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba (Tenggara), National Unity minister Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique (Kota Tinggi) and Federal Territories minister Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim (Arau).
Also missing from the line-up were three caretaker deputy ministers – Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Special Function) Datuk Mastura Mohd Yazid (Kuala Kangsar), Housing and Local Government deputy minister Datuk Seri Ismail Abd Muttalib (Maran) and Communications and Multimedia deputy minister Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin (Padang Besar).
A defiant Shahidan announced last night that he is running for GE15 despite being dropped while hinting that he might be contesting under the Perikatan Nasional (PN) ticket.
According to a NST report, the four-term Arau MP said he was contesting on the basis of being a winnable candidate after the BN leadership had rejected the list of potential candidates that were proposed by the Arau UMNO division.
“I will consult my supporters in Arau and they are in favour of a party that leans towards Muafakat Nasional together with PAS and Bersatu,” he said when met at his service centre in Kubang Gajah. – Nov 2, 2022
