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Sunday October 25, 2009

Lobby for hot seat warms up

INSIGHT: By JOCELINE TAN


It looked like a storm in a teacup but the recent tiff between PKR vice-president Azmin Ali and rising star Datuk Zaid Ibrahim looks like a prelude to a tussle for the PKR No. 2 post in next year’s party elections.

PKR vice-president Azmin Ali is one of the most-watched faces in Parliament.

At the same time, the Gombak MP has an inscrutable face; his expression changes little whether he is happy, upset or amused.

Khairul: ‘Azmin and Zaid can complement each other’

But those who are into the art of face-reading say he has lucky “Buddha ear-lobes” and that his “onion nose” denotes wealth.

“He does not talk a lot but he gets things done and he delivers,” said PKR Youth vice-head Khairul Anuar.

For a public figure, Azmin is rather private as a person. He does not always answer his mobile phone nor does he reply to text messages. Some say it is because his phone is flooded with hundreds of calls and messages a day.

But behind that hard-to-read face lies a very organised, systematic and ambitious politician.

Azmin, it is said, is about to take his political ambitions to another level. He is eyeing the No. 2 post in the party elections next May because the incumbent Dr Syed Husin Ali, 73, has indicated he may not go for another term.

Azmin is the forerunner for the post but there is now another potential contender in the form of Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, the former Umno minister and lawyer who joined PKR in a blaze of publicity last year.

Having burnt his bridges with Umno, Zaid has become a star of sorts in PKR and even among the Pakatan Rakyat members.

He is erudite and his views on Malaysian society and politics have resonated among the younger set and the non-Malays. They like it that here is a Malay professional who articulates Malaysian views so well.

Prominent figure

Zaid has been moving around in his capacity as the key person looking into formalising the Pakatan coalition. He has been invited to speak about it and PKR people have had the chance to hear his views and ideas.

All of a sudden, Zaid has become a figure to be reckoned with in PKR although he has been rather reticent about the whole thing.

“I am not interested in the No. 2 post nor do I want to talk about it at this point in time,” he said.

It is still early days and a good six months to the party polls. But a subtle competition seems to be in the making.

Zaid may claim reluctance but he certainly did not join PKR to hibernate or graze away the rest of his days. If he succeeds in his assignment to get Pakatan inked as a coalition, then a lot can happen for him in the party.

Why is the No. 2 post in PKR such a big deal?

For a start, PKR rank and file believe that they will be in Putrajaya after the next general election.

They think they still have a good chance because the other Barisan Nasional parties are still in dire shape even though Umno is on the road to recovery.

“We are still confident. The ground is still for change,” said PKR vice-president Dr Lee Boon Chye.

As such, every top party post becomes a leverage for something more in the event of victory. The Pakatan shadow cabinet has Azmin in the finance portfolio although his staunch supporters say he is deputy prime minister material.

Secondly, the party is being realistic about Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s legal problems this time around. They are worried he may be sent to prison again, hence the necessity for a No. 2 who will be able to hold the party as well as the coalition together.

Anak Ibrahim: Azmin is surrounded by three anak Ibrahim or sons of Ibrahim. Only one, Anwar, is of help to him, however, as Zaid (second from left) and Khalid (far left) are more bane than boon to him

The president’s post is Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail’s for as long as she is willing; but the next No. 2 will have to be more than a figurehead.

He must play a real organising role in the party the way, for instance, Umno’s deputy president does. Should something happen to Anwar, the No. 2 has to be co-commander-in-chief to Dr Wan Azizah.

Still, the man to watch is Azmin, who has been preparing to move up for some time.

When Anwar reshuffled the party portfolios earlier this year, Azmin was reassigned from his post as elections director to head of a task force overseeing the reorganisation of the party at the state level. The new role gives him great access to state-level politics.

He also took temporary charge of Sabah which has 25 divisions and which will have a big say in the party polls.

Azmin probably saw Sabah as his “fixed deposit” for the party polls. But Sabah politics can be very aggressive and he has been forced to make way for a local face.

The local Sabah politics took on a national flavour recently when the political bureau asked Zaid to look into grievances over there.

But Azmin objected because he doubted that Zaid would be an impartial mediator.

At this point, Anwar sided with Azmin and asked Zaid not to go over, whereupon Zaid immediately took six months’ leave from the political bureau and flew off to Kota Kinabalu and then to Kuching.

The storm has since blown over with Anwar calling a meeting to sort out the misunderstanding.

It all sounds like a storm in a teacup to the unsuspecting onlooker but to the party rank-and-file, it had all the signs of a developing showdown between Azmin and Zaid.

The incident once again illustrated the special bond between Anwar and his protege Azmin.

Magazine editor Helmi Hanafi has a witty take on the situation. He said there are three anak Ibrahim or sons of Ibrahim in Azmin’s life. But only one, Anwar Ibrahim, can protect him. The other two, Zaid Ibrahim and Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, are not exactly his allies.

Loyal lieutenant

Detractors have insinuated all sorts of stories about the mentor-protege relationship of Anwar and Azmin, but the fact is that Azmin has been Anwar’s most loyal and reliable lieutenant.

Anwar is aware of complaints about Azmin but he has also told people that Azmin is irreplaceable.

Azmin, on his part, has long been accused of controlling Anwar and blamed for ousting people like former deputy president Dr Chandra Muzaffar and former Youth chief Ezam Mohd Nor.

At the same time, he will toe the line when the boss puts his foot down. For instance, at the last party elections in 2007, Azmin secured far more nominations than Syed Husin for the No. 2 post and would have won hands down.

But he pulled out upon the urging of Anwar who wanted Syed Husin up there to appease the NGOs and former Parti Rakyat Malaysia camps.

“The thing is, Azmin was only 27 when he began working with Anwar. He is now in his 40s and still very loyal to Anwar, so why wouldn’t Anwar trust someone like that?” said Helmi.

The Sabah episode was Zaid’s first taste of the unbreakable mentor-protege relationship of Anwar and Azmin and there will be other instances to come.

Zaid is a necessary asset to PKR but it is a no brainer whose side Anwar will take if he has to choose between Zaid and Azmin.

“We need a variety of leaders in PKR. I think Azmin and Zaid can complement each other,” said Khairul.

Azmin and Khalid are the only two persons in PKR who won in Parliamentary and state seats in the general election.

Khalid was rewarded with the Mentri Besar post whereas Azmin is still an ordinary backbencher. From most accounts, Azmin is about to get his reward.

Anwar’s ultimate right-hand man is ready to claim his spot at the top of the party.

Will he get Anwar’s blessing this time around? Or will Anwar stop him again?

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