KUALA LUMPUR: The UMNO and Barisan Nasional (BN) machinery has been reminded not to become complacent with their victory in the recent Nenggiri state by-election, as it could jeopardise the party’s chances of winning the Mahkota polls in Johor next month.
Therefore, Johor UMNO deputy chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan urged the party’s machinery to remain focused and continue making thorough preparations.
“Do not get carried away with the success in Nenggiri, just as we should not have been complacent with the success of (Pakatan Harapan) in the Kuala Kubu Baharu state by-election. We lost in the Sungai Bakap state by-election, perhaps due to overconfidence after winning in Kuala Kubu Baharu.
“When we lost in Sungai Bakap, we doubled our efforts in Nenggiri. A reminder to the machinery: we won in Kuala Kubu Baharu but lost in Sungai Bakap. Having won in Nenggiri, we must not lose in Mahkota. Therefore, the machinery must continue to make thorough preparations,“ he told Bernama.
Ahmad, who is also the BN deputy director of the Mahkota by-election, hopes that the candidate to be fielded by BN will meet the criteria of winnable, acceptable and likeable (WALI) as emphasised by UMNO president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
“And we hope that the candidate selection is not made too late. If we announce it earlier, the candidate can start moving earlier. So, that’s another method from Nenggiri that we can implement (in Mahkota). It shouldn’t be announced just two days before nomination day,“ he said.
Commenting on BN’s chances of retaining the Mahkota state seat, Ahmad said he hopes the party can double the previous majority to 10,000.
However, he did not rule out the possibility of winning by an even larger majority since BN is now working together with the machinery from PH.
“I hope for a majority of 10,000; But we in Johor want to win as much as we reasonably can. This means not just a narrow victory; we want a big win.
“In theory, this is possible because previously we obtained about 16,000 votes and PH garnered about 11,000. So naturally we hope for a bigger win,“ he said.
The Election Commission has set Sept 28 as polling day for the Mahkota by-election, with nomination on Sept 14 and early voting on Sept 24.
The seat became vacant following the death of incumbent assemblyman Datuk Sharifah Azizah Syed Zain, 63, on Aug 2.
