THE PAYOUT - 4 DEFECTIONS IN EXCHANGE FOR HOME MINISTER'S POST? - ZAHID UPS THE ANTE ON MUHYIDDIN - BUT SPARKS CONCERN AGAINST HIMSELF INSTEAD

KUALA LUMPUR (Politics Now!) - It looks like DPM Zahid Hamidi is going all out to win back his 'golden goose' Home Ministry and is banking on a grand victory at the Pelangai by-election in Pahang to do it. 

The Umno president upped the ante on the opposition by claiming that 4 PN-PAS assemblymen might defect to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's unity government soon.

But is Zahid really serious or is he just trying to convince Anwar to let him replace the hapless Saifuddin Nasution as Home Minister when a much-anticipated federal Cabinet reshuffle rolls along.  

"We hope the four come from them,” Malay Mail reported Zahid as saying his claim was based on "inside information".

He was responding to a claim made by ex-prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who heads the PN-PAS opposition coalition, that all it took to topple the Pahang state government was for 4 reps to switch sides once the PAS candidate Kasim Samat beats Umno's Amizar Abdu Adam at Pelangai by-election on October 7.

That would pave the way for PAS' popular No.2 Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man to replace Umno incumbent Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail as the Pahang MB or chief minister.

Zahid, who was controversially discharged from massive corruption charges linked to his previous stint as home minister, had sparked public concern when he highlighted his willingness to 'serve in any post' that his long-time pal Anwar saw fit to appoint him to.

 Many saw it as a hint the Umno president was keen to exchange his Rural ministry for the powerful Home Ministry. He is currently both DPM and Rural minister.

'JOKING' AGAIN?

However, few pundits see Zahid's defections claim as credible, treating it as campaign trail 'noise' in the game of one-upmanship with the opposition.

Meanwhile, a survey by Akademi Pengajian Melayu Universiti Malaya (APM) claims that the ruling Harapan-Umno-BN coalition has the edge in Pelangai. 

The survey indicated that virtually all respondents have decided which candidate they are voting for - 55.5 percent will vote for BN and 43.2 percent for Perikatan Nasional.Asked if the current administration in Pahang should be maintained, 58.6 percent of respondents agreed while 27.9 percent were unsure. Only 13.5 percent disagreed.

According to Malaysiakini, the survey found the majority of respondents from three Felda settlements - Chemomoi, Sungai Kemasul, and Sungai Kemahal - were satisfied with Wan Rosdy's state government while a minority were not.

"These three Felda settlements were where PN performed best during the 2022 general election and are expected to be key battlegrounds for the Pelangai polls," said the survey.

Politics Now!