Discontent in Malacca Umno: Calls mount to replace Rauf instead of Sulaiman
Amid uncertainties in Malacca over the position of incumbent Chief Minister Sulaiman Md Ali, there seems to be growing discontent against state Umno liaison chief Rauf Ab Yusof.
Malaysiakini learned that several Umno divisions are looking into removing Rauf (above), who is said to be eyeing the chief minister post and allegedly had been trying to push Sulaiman out.
According to sources within Umno, several divisions are aiming for Sulaiman to replace Rauf as a way to solve their woes which purportedly had been going on since Umno won back Malacca in last year's state election.
The move started earlier this week with the Alor Gajah Umno division holding a division meeting to discuss the matter, after which its acting chief announced that they wanted Sulaiman to lead the state Umno.
Several other Umno divisions in Malacca are believed to be following the Alor Gajah division's footsteps, including the Tangga Batu division, which will hold its meeting to deliberate on the suggestion tomorrow.
Tangga Batu Umno chief Mohamad Ali Mohamad claimed that the party grassroots had expressed their wish to see a "smooth" leadership and governance in the state and hence, wanted both positions to be held by the same person as what had been the usual practice previously.
"We will have to hold a meeting first. It will be this week, probably tomorrow," he told Malaysiakini when contacted today.
"It has been the wish of the party grassroots to see a better and smoother coordination between the party leadership and the (state) government," he added.
Ali, who is also the state Umno deputy liaison chief, which makes him Rauf's number two, also indicated that other divisions might also hold meetings to discuss the proposal to replace Rauf with Sulaiman.
Malacca Umno has six divisions in total, namely Masjid Tanah, Tangga Batu, Alor Gajah, Hang Tuah Jaya, Kota Melaka and Jasin.
Malacca Chief Minister Sulaiman Md Ali
Division chief versus committee member
During Umno and BN's 60 years of ruling the country and most of its states, the state Umno liaison chief at a BN-led state is to be the menteri besar or chief minister by convention, except when the party's top leadership decides otherwise.
Despite being chosen by the party's leadership to lead the state government, the problem in Malacca Umno stemmed from the fact that Sulaiman holds no significant post in the state party hierarchy.
On the other hand, Rauf is the appointed state party chief. He is also the division chief for Masjid Tanah Umno, of which Sulaiman is a committee member.
It was understood that the move to get Sulaiman to replace Rauf would still be tricky, even if all the state Umno divisions, including the one controlled by Rauf, agreed to the move.
For one, according to the Umno constitution, the prerogative to appoint a state Umno liaison chief is solely in the hands of the party president, who is not legally bound to follow state divisions' demands.
Sulaiman being a mere committee division member is said to be another hindrance, as Umno also has an unwritten rule that its state liaison chiefs are chosen among elected division leaders.
Several Umno insiders told Malaysiakini that there is also a purported plan to make Sulaiman a division chief first.
A source claimed that one plan is to get Sulaiman to challenge Rauf for the Masjid Tanah Umno division chief post in the party election, which has to be held by December this year.
However, this would depend heavily on the outcome of this Sunday's Umno extraordinary meeting aimed at delaying the party election until after the conclusion of the next general polls.
Meanwhile, another source close to Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's office indicated that the party headquarters is aware of the developments and the resulting internal unrest within Malacca Umno and monitoring closely.
According to the insider, there has been no decision made over the call to replace Rauf, but the party headquarters understood that the ongoing brouhaha in Malacca would not die down until both positions are held by the same person.
"The only solution to this is to either make Rauf the chief minister or make Sulaiman the state Umno chief," the source said.
Malaysiakini has sent requests for comments to Rauf and Sulaiman, but both are currently in Bosnia on a work trip.
Division chief versus committee member
During Umno and BN's 60 years of ruling the country and most of its states, the state Umno liaison chief at a BN-led state is to be the menteri besar or chief minister by convention, except when the party's top leadership decides otherwise.
Despite being chosen by the party's leadership to lead the state government, the problem in Malacca Umno stemmed from the fact that Sulaiman holds no significant post in the state party hierarchy.
On the other hand, Rauf is the appointed state party chief. He is also the division chief for Masjid Tanah Umno, of which Sulaiman is a committee member.
It was understood that the move to get Sulaiman to replace Rauf would still be tricky, even if all the state Umno divisions, including the one controlled by Rauf, agreed to the move.
For one, according to the Umno constitution, the prerogative to appoint a state Umno liaison chief is solely in the hands of the party president, who is not legally bound to follow state divisions' demands.
Sulaiman being a mere committee division member is said to be another hindrance, as Umno also has an unwritten rule that its state liaison chiefs are chosen among elected division leaders.
Several Umno insiders told Malaysiakini that there is also a purported plan to make Sulaiman a division chief first.
A source claimed that one plan is to get Sulaiman to challenge Rauf for the Masjid Tanah Umno division chief post in the party election, which has to be held by December this year.
However, this would depend heavily on the outcome of this Sunday's Umno extraordinary meeting aimed at delaying the party election until after the conclusion of the next general polls.
Meanwhile, another source close to Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's office indicated that the party headquarters is aware of the developments and the resulting internal unrest within Malacca Umno and monitoring closely.
According to the insider, there has been no decision made over the call to replace Rauf, but the party headquarters understood that the ongoing brouhaha in Malacca would not die down until both positions are held by the same person.
"The only solution to this is to either make Rauf the chief minister or make Sulaiman the state Umno chief," the source said.
Malaysiakini has sent requests for comments to Rauf and Sulaiman, but both are currently in Bosnia on a work trip.
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