After serving three terms as deputy president, Nasharudin Mat Isa is expected to be kicked out as PAS' number two following pressure from religious scholar Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man.

pas for all campaign launch 110907 nasharudin mat isa Tuan Ibrahim is also expected to receive support from the party's ulama for the number two bid after the influential group shifted their weight away from former International Islamic University Malaysia law lecturer Nasharudin ( right ).

Slated also to be a casualty in the change in groundswell among the ulama members of the party is popular grassroots leader and former vice-president Mohamad Sabu.

That groundswell for Tuan Ibrahim, thus, looks set to be unstoppable despite the PAS leader's earlier reluctance to enter the fray for the deputy presidency.

According to political observer Mohd Sayuti Omar, Tuan Ibrahim's bid for the seat is seen as a “signal” from certain quarters of his chances of winning.

“However, his weakness lies in the possibility that party delegates (to the annual muktamar scheduled to begin this Friday) may see his late announcement to contest the seat as opportunistic.

pas muktamar 130610 tuan ibrahim tuan man “Only when he received a lot of nominations did he enter the contest,” Mohd Sayuti, who is chief editor of Siasah , told Malaysiakini .

He did not say where he got to know of the 'signal' given to Tuan Ibrahim.

According to a source close to the ulama, meanwhile, the moves to boost Tuan Ibrahim ( left ) up the echelons are being carried out by parties behind PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang who are themselves considered intellectuals and academics.

'Geng Terengganu'

According to the source, the head of the party's Dewan Ulama wing – Harun Taib – was delegated to persuade Tuan Ibrahim into accepting the candidacy for the number two position.

“The role (to persuade Tuan Ibrahim) was played by the Dewan Ulama and a group labelled as the ' Geng Terengganu ' (Terengganu Gang).

“Also delegated to the task was (PAS Youth) chief Nasrudin Hassan,” added the party insider.

hadi awang pas malaysiakini visit 010807 profess The ' Geng Terengganu ' monicker has been used since two years ago to refer to a clique linked to Abdul Hadi ( right ).

Other than Harun and Nasrudin, PAS central committee member Abu Bakar Chik is also said to be in the group.

Another party insider said the drastic change of support by the ulama was motivated by the loss of confidence among the latter in Nasharudin's ability to forward the group's agenda.

“His image has been affected,” said the source in reference to the Bachok member of parliament, with whom PAS leaders are said to be 'uncomfortable'.

Tuan Ibrahim's agreement to contest had earlier been seen as following the ulama's concerns about pressure from Mohamad Sabu.

Mohamad was the earliest to announce his candidacy for deputy president, his second bid so far.

A 'nobody'

Tuan Ibrahim's bid also follows consideration of the number of nominations he received. The Pahang PAS commissioner received 39 nominations in support of his contest for the number two spot, behind Mohamad (47 nominations) and Nasharudin (43).

It is understood that at least 15 party divisions that are in support of Tuan Ibrahim had not submitted their nomination letters before the deadline stipulated.

Many are in agreement, however, that the real fight will be between Tuan Ibrahim and Mohamad, with Nasharudin trailing behind in terms of support.

Tuan Ibrahim, though a “religious celebrity”, is seen as a “nobody" in the arena of politics and has a limited sphere of influence.

Many political observers believe the three-corner fight for the deputy presidency will be a close one.