Various accounts have surfaced on the political crisis in Terengganu, where it is said a power struggle is raging between the factions of current menteri besar Ahmad Said and his predecessor Idris Jusoh.

hishammuddin hussein pc 210509 04 However, Terengganu Umno liaison chief and party vice-president Hishammuddin Hussein painted an optimistic picture.

According to him, things have started to look better following last night's 'face-to-face' meeting between the two camps chaired by him.

The meeting, he added, also cleared the perception that there were factions in the Barisan Nasional-led state government.

Hishammuddin, who is also home minister, said the meeting, participated by all BN state assemblypersons and division leaders, provided an avenue for "grievances to be aired and perceptions to be clarified."

"There are also a lot of things that may be just baggage from the past, but (I hope) these will be put aside for the bigger picture.

"I am happy with what happened last night and we will keep continuing to do that (having meetings and discussions with BN leaders)," he told reporters in Putrajaya.

On the same note, Hishammuddin also urged all BN leaders to discuss these issues among themselves instead of doing it in the media.

However, he denied issuing a directive prohibiting the leaders from making public statements on the issue.

"I cannot direct them to do anything at all but I appeal to their good sense of responsibility to the party and the public," he said, adding that if it is discussed in open, it would create fear.

No resolution yet

Despite Hishammuddin's optimism, Hulu Besut assemblyperson Nawi Mohamad claimed that the meeting failed to resolve the problem.

Nawi, who attended the meeting, told Malaysiakini that it was still difficult for the two camps to bury the hatchet.

ahmad said idris jusoh terengganu "There is no other way apart from the top leadership looking into the reasons behind the anger of the state representatives to the point that it had sparked off this crisis.

"They (the leadership) has to look at Ahmad's performance as menteri besar. This is most important," he added.

Relating a different take on what transpired last night, Dungun Umno division chief Rosli Mat Hassan said all Umno divisions in the state have no problems with Ahmad’s leadership.

He also claimed that the so-called political crisis has been blown out of proportion.

Rosli added that all division chiefs, including Idris (Besut), agreed to Hishamuddin’s request to solve the issue together.

When met in Kuala Lumpur this evening, Idris described the meeting as a positive step.

"When all of us sit together (to discuss), things will get better," he said, declining to elaborate further.

Asked to comment on Rosli's remarks and if more meetings would be held, Idris said all questions pertaining to this issue should be referred to Hishammuddin.

Respect the sultan's choice

Meanwhile, Hishammuddin also said that he had urged all Terengganu leaders to stress the need to remain united to their supporters on the ground.

"In the immediate future, I will direct them to bring this (unity) message to their respective divisions and I will visit these divisions within one or two weeks time (to see its progress)," he said.

He also remained positive on the meeting, describing it as a "starting point to re-organise and re-strengthen" the BN-led government in Terengganu.

"As a party state liaison chairperson who takes the matter very seriously, I think the meeting we had yesterday was a good start," he added.

Hishammuddin also stressed that "all the party leaders have to show their undivided loyalty to king" - referring to the fact that Terengganu menteri besar Ahmad was the Terengganu sultan's choice. The sultan is also the present king.

Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin appointed Ahmad after the general election in March 2008 amid a major uproar among the Umno top leaders and members who had endorsed former menteri besar Idris as their leader.

Since then, BN government in the state has been fragile with two camps of Idris' supporters and Ahmad's men being at odds.

Umno constitutional changes to 'empower', says Hisham

VIDEO l 3 mins