Selangor: Mat Taib not on the list

Former Selangor menteri besar and Umno information chief Muhammad Muhd Taib will not be reviving his political career in this elections after all.

It was widely speculated that Muhammad will make a political comeback in the March 8 polls, more than 10 years after he resigned as menteri besar in 1997 in the wake of a scandal.

However, his name was not on the list revealed by Selangor Menteri Besar and state Barisan Nasional (BN) chairperson Dr Mohd Khir Toyo today.

Muhammad was charged in the Brisbane Magistrate’s Court in 1997of currency regulation breaches involving more than 1.3 million Australian. He was later acquitted.

Also absent from the Selangor list was controversial Port Klang state assemblyperson Zakaria Md Derus.

Rumours that Mohd Khir was expected to contest for a parliamentary seat also ended after his name was announced for the Sg Panjang state seat.

Skips Selayang seat

Mohd Khir also failed to shed light on the mystery surrounding the political future of MCA deputy president and Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy.

When announcing the list, the menteri besar skipped the Selayang parliamentary seat held by Chan.

"Selayang is still being discussed. We hope to announce it at 4pm," he said without elaborating during the press conference at the Selangor Umno headquarters in Shah Alam.

However, up until 5.50pm there was no announcement but the names of the MCA parliamentary candidates are expected to be known later this evening as they are currently attending a briefing at the party headquarters.

The Star today reported that Chan is expected to withdraw from contesting and will announce his decision today.

Party insiders said that Chan met with Prime Minister and BN chairperson Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in Putrajaya this afternoon to discuss his candidacy.

Replaced by daughter-in-law

Meanwhile, the Selangor menteri besar revealed that Zakaria has been replaced by his daughter-in-law Roselinda Abdul Jamil, who is the Klang division Puteri Umno chief.

Roselinda first came into the picture after she and Zakaria's son Zainuri replaced the Klang strongman as councilors in the Klang Municipal Council in October 2006.

Zakaria withdrew his name from the list of councilors after news of him building a "palace" in Klang without approval, running an unlicensed eatery and not paying assessment for 13 years made headlines.

Commenting on Roselinda’s candidacy, Mohd Khir said: "Her relationship to Datuk Zed (Zakaria) does not arise at all. She's a capable leader in her own right and we felt that she was the best candidate for Port Klang."

MCA old faces dropped

The other highlight was the axing of several MCA old faces.

Incumbents Yap Pian Hon, Loh Seng Kok, Dr Wong Sai Hou and Lim Choon Kim were dropped from MCA's state line-up.

Replacing Yap is Seri Kembangan state assemblyperson Hoh Hee Lee while Kelana Jaya will have Lee Hwa Beng (Subang Jaya state assemblyperson). MCA Kelana Jaya Wanita chief Ong Chong Swen will be making her debut in replacement of Lee.

New faces into the foray is former ntv7 newscaster Victor Gu ( left ) and Seah Kok Fah who will replace Wong and Lim in the Kg Tunku and Damansara Utama state seats respectively.

For MIC, there were no changes to names announced by party president S Samy Vellu yesterday.

In total, Selangor BN is fielding 34 new faces in the March 8 elections. Eight MPs and 26 state assemblypersons were dropped from its lineup.

Selangor has 22 parliamentary seats and 54 state seats. In the 2004 general election, Selangor lost two state seats to DAP - Sungai Pinang and Sekinchan.

Below is the list of candidates in the state seats

Sungai Air Tawar: Raja Ideris Raja Ahmad

Sabak: Warno Dogol

Sungai Panjang: Dr Mohd Khir Toyo

Sekinchan: Puah Bon Choon

Hulu Bernam: Mohamed Idris Abu Bakar

Kuala Kubu Bharu: Wong Koon Mun

Batang Kali: Mohd Isa Abu Kasim

Sungai Burong: Mohd Shamsudin Lias

Permatang: Sulaiman Abd Razak

Bukit Melawati: K Parthiban

Ijok: Mohamed Sayuti Said

Jeram: Amiruddin Setro

Kuang: Abdul Shukor Idrus

Rawang: Goh Ah Ling

Taman Templer: Subahan Kamal

Batu Caves: T Mohan

Gombak Setia: Yuszahari Mohd Yusoff

Hulu Klang: Ahmad Bujang

Bukit Antarabangsa: Haslinda Mohd Zirain

Lembah Jaya: Ismail Kijo

Chempaka: Nosimah Hashim

Teratai: Lum Weng Keong

Dusun Tua: Ismail Sani

Semenyih: Johan Aziz

Kajang: Low Lee Leng

Bangi: Mohd Fathil Daud

Balakong: Dr Lai Kwong Choy

Seri Kembangan: Liew Yeun Keong

Seri Serdang: Mohamad Satim Diman

Kinrara: Kow Cheong Wei

Subang Jaya: Ong Chong Chuan

Seri Setia: Seripah Noli Syed Hussin

Taman Medan: Mona Liza Hamzah

Bukit Gasing: Dr Lim Thuang Seng

Kampung Tengku: Sheah Kok Wah

Damansara Utama: Victor Gu Chian Peow

Bukit Lanjan: Yeong Dai Ying

Paya Jaras: Muhammad Bushro Mat Johor

Kota Damansara: Zein Isma Ismail

Kota Anggerik: Ahmad Nawawi M.Zin

Batu 3: Salamon Selamat

Meru: Md Ghazali Md Amin

Sementa: Abdul Rahman Palil

Sungai Pinang: Song Kee Chai

Selat Klang: Norliza Ahmad

Pelabuhan Klang: Roselinda Abdul Jamil

Pandamaran: Teh Kim Poh

Kota Alam Shah: Ching Su Chean

Seri Andalas: A Kamalam

Seri Muda: Amzah Umar

Sijangkang: Abdul Fatah Iskandar

Teluk Datuk: Ei Kim Hock

Morib: Hasiman Sidom

Tanjung Sepat: Dr Karim Mansor

Dengkil: Malsum Paing

Sungai Pelek: Yap Ee Wah