Onn Hafiz, Ahmad Maslan Appointed Bn Director, Deputy Director Of Mahkota By-election

BATU PAHAT, Aug 18 (Bernama) -- Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi and Deputy Works Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan were respectively appointed as the director and deputy director of the Mahkota state by-election for Barisan Nasional (BN).

Announcing the appointment, BN chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Kluang UMNO Division chief Datuk Md Jais Sarday was appointed as director of operations while Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin was appointed as coordinator for the by-election.

"The Mahkota state by-election will not use the same template (as the Nenggiri state constituency) because of the different (political) landscape and demographics," he told reporters after handing over the commissioning to the 2024 National Student Civil Defence Corps (Sispa Corps) at Tun Hussein University. Onn Malaysia (UTHM) here today.

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The Election Commission (EC) set the voting day for the Mahkota state assembly by-election on Sept 28, while the candidate nomination and early voting dates were set for Sept 14 and 24 respectively.

The Mahkota state by-election was held following the death of incumbent Datuk Sharifah Azizah Syed Zain, 63, on August 2 while being treated at Enche' Besar Hajjah Khalsom Hospital (HEBHK), Kluang.

Ahmad Zahid who is also the Deputy Prime Minister said the Mahkota state constituency has 66,000 voters including 52 per cent young voters as well as more than 4,000 soldiers and 400 police.

Commenting on the candidate for the by-election, the UMNO president said he had received the list of candidates and would shortlist the candidates after holding discussions with Kluang UMNO Division and Johor State UMNO.

He said the by-election candidates will be selected based on the criteria of 'acceptability', 'winnability' and 'likability' to ensure BN's victory in the Mahkota state assembly.

Regarding BN's victory in the Nenggiri state assembly by-election, Ahmad Zahid said the victory was a manifestation of the acceptance of UMNO and BN in Kelantan.

"We know Kelantan is a state dominated by PAS for so long, more than three decades, but the relevance of UMNO and BN in Kelantan must be accepted as a fact," he said.

In the Nenggiri state by-election yesterday, BN candidate Mohd Azmawi Fikri Abdul Ghani won with a large majority of 3,352 votes after obtaining 9,091 votes and defeated his challenger from PAS Mohd Rizwadi Ismail representing Perikatan Nasional (PN) who obtained 5,739 votes.

-- BERNAMA