This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on April 16, 2018

KUALA TERENGGANU: Umno leaders in Terengganu need to resolve festering disunity within the party if it hopes to do well in the coming general election.

Last week, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had to remind party leaders in the state to pull together as a team for the fast approaching electoral test on May 9.

Speaking at the launch of the BN manifesto for Terengganu, Ahmad Zahid told state leaders to draw a lesson from the past.

“I want Terengganu folks to learn from previous experience, when we experienced differences and disunity. We lost Terengganu for one term, do not repeat that mistake,” he said, referring to the BN’s loss of the state to PAS in the 1999 general election.

“Don’t look back. We must support the candidates nominated under the BN flag, no matter who they are and under whatever the situation,” Ahmad Zahid reminded the 5,000-strong gathering.

Noticeably, Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Razif Abdul Rahman did not touch on the matter during his speech.

In the last general election in 2013, BN did not fare well in Terengganu under the watch of then-MB Datuk Seri Ahmad Said.

He had been appointed after the 12th general election in 2008 to replace Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh after Terengganu Sultan Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin refused to re-appoint the latter for a second term.

Under Ahmad Said’s watch, BN won four parliamentary seats, from seven in the previous election, with PAS taking four seats. In the state assembly, it won only 17 of 32 state seats, down from 24 in GE12.

The huge difference in BN’s performance between 2008 and 2013 was not because of the strength of the opposition, opined National Council of Professors (MPN) Politics, Security and International Affairs Cluster secretary Prof Datuk Dr Abdul Halim Sidek.

“Look at the previous election results. PAS won in Umno strongholds [in Terengganu] because of the presence of internal friction [within Umno] which cost them a comfortable win in GE13. PAS won against Umno by very slim margins,” Abdul Halim told The Edge Financial Daily.

In 2014, the state was almost lost to the opposition again after Ahmad Razif was appointed to replace Ahmad Said, who was said to have agreed to serve as MB for the second term for only one year after GE13.

Ahmad Said’s resignation was swiftly followed by his quitting Umno alongside Ajil state assemblyman Ghazali Taib, leaving Umno with 15 state seats. With the opposition coalition holding an equal number (PAS held 14 and PKR one), the state was faced with a hung legislative assembly.

The crisis was averted only after Prime Minister and BN chairman Datuk Seri Najib Razak intervened to persuade the duo to rescind their decisions.

However, the state government’s problems did not end there. In March 2016, Ahmad Said made a bid to move a motion of no-confidence against Razif, but failed.

Political observers say that Razif has the support of Umno grassroots, as well as backing from Idris.

Ahmad Zahid, who was on his second visit to the state last week, hinted to Umno leaders that Razif would be re-appointed. Ahmad Said was conspicuously absent at the meeting.

“God willing with the blessing of the Terengganu Sultan, he [the incumbent MB] will continue to lead us in this state,” Ahmad Zahid said.

Observers recall that the Sultan’s decision to temporarily revoke Razif’s datukship between April and December 2016 for unknown reasons had sparked speculation at the time that Razif’s tenure, too, could end prematurely.

Another possibility for Terengganu is an entirely clean slate. Rumour has it that Najib will field his two-term political secretary Datuk Jailani Ngah — who is a local — to replace Razif as MB if Terengganu stays in BN’s hands post-GE14, with Razif set for a parliamentary seat.

MPN’s Abdul Halim opined that the decision for BN to field fresh faces will improve the coalition’s chances in GE14. “People still want BN in Terengganu because of how the state has progressed in development and economy, but fielding the right players will be a key factor.”

He also expects such a decision will be accepted by the Umno leaders in Terengganu and their supporters, as it is in line with BN’s recently-launched manifesto.

“The coalition will highlight new and younger candidates who are dynamic, have the right capabilities and background, and of course the integrity. It is a nationwide reform by BN,” he said.