"One Day, Khairy Will Be A Minister" - Zahid
Zahid described Khairy as ‘Cabinet material’
BY JOCELINE TAN
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi must have felt a stab of nostalgia as he stood before the gathering of UMNO Youth leaders in Janda Baik last weekend.
He had once been the leader of UMNO Youth but he is now 57 and his hair is beginning to grey. Ahmad Zahid, now an Umno vice-president, still has a playful way about him that gels well with the young crowd.
For weeks, there had been a buzz among supporters of current Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin that he might be in line for a deputy minister post.
Ahmad Zahid knows how frustrated Khairy’s supporters still are that their man did not get a government post in Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s line-up in April.
He had been in a similar and equally frustrating situation 10 years ago when he was snubbed by then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
So, he said: “If I become the Prime Minister at 12.50pm (the time then), I will appoint Khairy a minister at 12.51pm. But I am not the Prime Minister.”
Ahmad Zahid is a pro at playing to the gallery and there was much clapping and cheering.
Apparently, this was not the first time he had used this line. He had, at previous Umno Youth gatherings in Penang and Ipoh, hailed Khairy as “Cabinet material” and said he believed that, “one day, Khairy will be a minister.”
Zahid’s proclamations have not gone down well with everyone.
The Umno set loves jokes and light-hearted remarks but unfortunately they also tend to take tongue-in-cheek comments rather too literally.
There have been a variety of interpretations of what Ahmad Zahid is up to. Many read it as Ahmad Zahid’s way of lobbying to get a post for Khairy. The senior man, after all, owes quite a lot to Khairy’s father-in-law Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who brought him into his Cabinet.
The mixed reaction to the efforts at promoting Khairy’s interests does show one thing: Feelings about the man once known as the most powerful 28-year-old are still pretty strong and divided.
The Rembau MP has a devoted band of supporters who are prepared to go the full distance with him. At the same time, there are many out there who simply refuse to accept him.
The opinion out there is terribly polemic.
His supporters still feel he was unfairly singled out when he was not given a government post.
“The status of the Youth chief is the same as that of an Umno vice-president. He should be up there,” said one of Khairy’s aides.
They argue a government post will make it easier for him to organise programmes and reach out to young Malays across the board.
But former Machang MP Datuk Sazmi Miah said: “There is no written rule that the Youth chief title comes with a government post. People have been saying a Youth chief who is also a minister cannot have an independent voice. Khairy should stay outside the Cabinet and play that role.”
A division Youth chief added: “It gives a wrong impression that to run Umno Youth, you need to be a minister or deputy minister. All of us have money problems so that is not an excuse.”
Khairy’s main problem is that he has yet to consolidate the Umno Youth ground since his controversial win in March. The rank-and-file was split three-ways by the contest among him, Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo and Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir.
He is still struggling to heal the divisions.
This was evident from the poor turnout at the Janda Baik retreat. The programme was for some 382 Youth heads and vice-heads of the 191 Umno divisions but the attendance rate was only about 50%.
Even Ahmad Zahid was concerned enough to ask whether this meant that there was only 50% support for Umno out there.
“We gave him the feedback after the party elections. He has to manage the grudges,” said Youth exco member Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz.
Khairy is known for his intelligent and contemporary outlook but he seems to lack the maturity to pull together the different factions in the Youth wing.
Moreover, there is still a great deal of resentment about the way he carried himself during the Abdullah years.
“His baptism of fire has not ended yet; his sabbatical is still on,” said Najib Isa, the Umno Youth head for Teluk Kemang.
A prime concern of Khairy’s boys is that two years down the road, he will be hard-pressed to defend his position in the wing without a government post.
And their worry is Datuk Razali Ibrahim, the incumbent No. 2 who is a Deputy Youth and Sports Minister, enjoys good ties with the top leaders.
The boyish-looking Razali celebrated his 39th birthday during the recent Umno Youth assembly. Razali and Khairy had each picked up a piece of cake to feed each other but somehow, after entwining arms, they ended up feeding themselves.
It made for a cosy picture but birthday parties and buddy-buddy behaviour are no guarantee that the two will not be facing each other in the next party polls.
Khairy’s supporters had tried to push his case at the Umno Youth assembly in October when several of those who spoke during the debate argued that a government post would give him more clout.
They were probably hoping that this would reach the ears of the top hierarchy at the Umno general assembly, but neither the party president nor his deputy picked up the issue.
Growing speculation
The recent resignation of Datuk Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib as Deputy Tourism Minister has raised their hopes of an advancement for their man.
The Prime Minister has quashed speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle but, as Khairy’s supporters pointed out, Sulaiman’s post has to be filled and they are keeping their fingers crossed.
Khairy, on his part, knew better than to talk about it.
He is now actually Haji Khairy, having just performed the Haj with his father-in-law and other family members.
He returned from Mecca with a patchy crew-cut, he had lost weight and his suit seemed a size too big for him when he turned up in Parliament this week.
Kota Belud MP Datuk Rahman Dahlan had asked Khairy about the speculation when they met in Parliament on Thursday morning.
“He was realistic about it. He is not lobbying, he knows it’s in the hands of the PM,” said Rahman.
The Prime Minister is an astute and instinctive politician. He came into the Umno presidency fully aware of the public perception towards Umno and its leaders.
He is aware of Khairy’s image inside and outside the party and nowhere was this more evident than during the string of by-elections.
There were specific requests from the local party machinery during these by-elections for Khairy to not campaign or to keep a low-profile because they were concerned that his presence would be counter-productive.
In the recent Bagan Pinang polls, his presence was apparently scaled down to three appearances after Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad’s supporters made it very clear that Khairy was not welcome.
Khairy began rather well as a government backbencher in Parliament. But other young MPs from both sides of the divide have since outshone him in terms of aggressiveness and diligence to matters of the House.
It has only been nine months since the Prime Minister formed his Cabinet and, according to party insiders, he is still evaluating Khairy.
Khairy will have to do more before the president is convinced that the public perception about his Youth chief has changed for the better.
In the meantime, speculation about Khairy getting a government post may have to remain just that. - The Star
BY JOCELINE TAN
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi must have felt a stab of nostalgia as he stood before the gathering of UMNO Youth leaders in Janda Baik last weekend.
He had once been the leader of UMNO Youth but he is now 57 and his hair is beginning to grey. Ahmad Zahid, now an Umno vice-president, still has a playful way about him that gels well with the young crowd.
For weeks, there had been a buzz among supporters of current Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin that he might be in line for a deputy minister post.
Ahmad Zahid knows how frustrated Khairy’s supporters still are that their man did not get a government post in Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s line-up in April.
He had been in a similar and equally frustrating situation 10 years ago when he was snubbed by then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
So, he said: “If I become the Prime Minister at 12.50pm (the time then), I will appoint Khairy a minister at 12.51pm. But I am not the Prime Minister.”
Ahmad Zahid is a pro at playing to the gallery and there was much clapping and cheering.
Apparently, this was not the first time he had used this line. He had, at previous Umno Youth gatherings in Penang and Ipoh, hailed Khairy as “Cabinet material” and said he believed that, “one day, Khairy will be a minister.”
Zahid’s proclamations have not gone down well with everyone.
The Umno set loves jokes and light-hearted remarks but unfortunately they also tend to take tongue-in-cheek comments rather too literally.
There have been a variety of interpretations of what Ahmad Zahid is up to. Many read it as Ahmad Zahid’s way of lobbying to get a post for Khairy. The senior man, after all, owes quite a lot to Khairy’s father-in-law Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who brought him into his Cabinet.
The mixed reaction to the efforts at promoting Khairy’s interests does show one thing: Feelings about the man once known as the most powerful 28-year-old are still pretty strong and divided.
The Rembau MP has a devoted band of supporters who are prepared to go the full distance with him. At the same time, there are many out there who simply refuse to accept him.
The opinion out there is terribly polemic.
His supporters still feel he was unfairly singled out when he was not given a government post.
“The status of the Youth chief is the same as that of an Umno vice-president. He should be up there,” said one of Khairy’s aides.
They argue a government post will make it easier for him to organise programmes and reach out to young Malays across the board.
But former Machang MP Datuk Sazmi Miah said: “There is no written rule that the Youth chief title comes with a government post. People have been saying a Youth chief who is also a minister cannot have an independent voice. Khairy should stay outside the Cabinet and play that role.”
A division Youth chief added: “It gives a wrong impression that to run Umno Youth, you need to be a minister or deputy minister. All of us have money problems so that is not an excuse.”
Khairy’s main problem is that he has yet to consolidate the Umno Youth ground since his controversial win in March. The rank-and-file was split three-ways by the contest among him, Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo and Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir.
He is still struggling to heal the divisions.
This was evident from the poor turnout at the Janda Baik retreat. The programme was for some 382 Youth heads and vice-heads of the 191 Umno divisions but the attendance rate was only about 50%.
Even Ahmad Zahid was concerned enough to ask whether this meant that there was only 50% support for Umno out there.
“We gave him the feedback after the party elections. He has to manage the grudges,” said Youth exco member Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz.
Khairy is known for his intelligent and contemporary outlook but he seems to lack the maturity to pull together the different factions in the Youth wing.
Moreover, there is still a great deal of resentment about the way he carried himself during the Abdullah years.
“His baptism of fire has not ended yet; his sabbatical is still on,” said Najib Isa, the Umno Youth head for Teluk Kemang.
A prime concern of Khairy’s boys is that two years down the road, he will be hard-pressed to defend his position in the wing without a government post.
And their worry is Datuk Razali Ibrahim, the incumbent No. 2 who is a Deputy Youth and Sports Minister, enjoys good ties with the top leaders.
The boyish-looking Razali celebrated his 39th birthday during the recent Umno Youth assembly. Razali and Khairy had each picked up a piece of cake to feed each other but somehow, after entwining arms, they ended up feeding themselves.
It made for a cosy picture but birthday parties and buddy-buddy behaviour are no guarantee that the two will not be facing each other in the next party polls.
Khairy’s supporters had tried to push his case at the Umno Youth assembly in October when several of those who spoke during the debate argued that a government post would give him more clout.
They were probably hoping that this would reach the ears of the top hierarchy at the Umno general assembly, but neither the party president nor his deputy picked up the issue.
Growing speculation
The recent resignation of Datuk Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib as Deputy Tourism Minister has raised their hopes of an advancement for their man.
The Prime Minister has quashed speculation of a Cabinet reshuffle but, as Khairy’s supporters pointed out, Sulaiman’s post has to be filled and they are keeping their fingers crossed.
Khairy, on his part, knew better than to talk about it.
He is now actually Haji Khairy, having just performed the Haj with his father-in-law and other family members.
He returned from Mecca with a patchy crew-cut, he had lost weight and his suit seemed a size too big for him when he turned up in Parliament this week.
Kota Belud MP Datuk Rahman Dahlan had asked Khairy about the speculation when they met in Parliament on Thursday morning.
“He was realistic about it. He is not lobbying, he knows it’s in the hands of the PM,” said Rahman.
The Prime Minister is an astute and instinctive politician. He came into the Umno presidency fully aware of the public perception towards Umno and its leaders.
He is aware of Khairy’s image inside and outside the party and nowhere was this more evident than during the string of by-elections.
There were specific requests from the local party machinery during these by-elections for Khairy to not campaign or to keep a low-profile because they were concerned that his presence would be counter-productive.
In the recent Bagan Pinang polls, his presence was apparently scaled down to three appearances after Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad’s supporters made it very clear that Khairy was not welcome.
Khairy began rather well as a government backbencher in Parliament. But other young MPs from both sides of the divide have since outshone him in terms of aggressiveness and diligence to matters of the House.
It has only been nine months since the Prime Minister formed his Cabinet and, according to party insiders, he is still evaluating Khairy.
Khairy will have to do more before the president is convinced that the public perception about his Youth chief has changed for the better.
In the meantime, speculation about Khairy getting a government post may have to remain just that. - The Star
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