INTERVIEW Housing, Urban Wellbeing and Local Government Minister Noh Omar is not surprised that Independent Port Klang assemblyperson Abdul Khalid Ibrahim appeared to be more popular when he was menteri besar than his successor, Mohamed Azmin Ali.

Noh, who is also Selangor Umno chief, claimed that Azmin, despite being PKR’s deputy president, was not the party’s first choice to replace Khalid.

“For me, Azmin was not given recognition from his party. He was already the party’s deputy president so if the party recognised his leadership, there would be no need to trigger the Kajang by-election to elect Khalid’s successor.

“So, he (Azmin) became menteri besar based on the ‘tears’ (losses) of others (Khalid). He became menteri besar based on the hard work of others,” Noh claimed during a recent interview with Malaysiakini at the Tanjung Karang Umno division office.

Unlike Azmin, Noh said, Khalid was more of a corporate figure than a politician, whose only "mistake" was to approve the construction of the Langat 2 water treatment plant in the interest of the people.

The ‘Kajang Move’, as it was known, eventually saw PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail defending the seat vacated by former PKR assemblyperson Lee Chin Cheh.

Jailed former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was initially slated to contest the seat but his conviction for sodomy saw Wan Azizah taking over at the last minute.

“So, I am not surprised that his (Azmin's) approval rating is lower (than Khalid’s),” the Tanjung Karang MP said, adding that PKR had also vilified Khalid in the party’s purported attempts to oust him.

Noh said this when asked to comment on findings of a recent survey by independent pollster Merdeka Center on Azmin’s performance as menteri besar.

The June 6 telephone poll among 1,011 Selangor voters showed that Azmin received the highest approval rating from the Malay respondents (69 percent), Indians (66 percent) and Chinese (54 percent).

Azmin’s support from among Chinese voters showed a 15 percent decrease compared to that his predecessor Khalid received, based on a survey conducted by the pollster in 2009.

Azmin was sworn in as menteri besar in September 2014, after months of political uncertainties in Selangor.

Since then, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has declared that the BN is now aiming to wrest Selangor from the federal opposition Pakatan Harapan, following its thumping victory in the Sungai Besar by-election.

'No personal desire to be Menteri Besar'

Asked whether he foresees himself as the next menteri besar if BN takes over Selangor, Noh said he never harboured any personal desire for the position.

"I never even thought about becoming a menteri besar because in my struggle, the most important thing is the party (Umno)," he said.

"Eventhough in the past I was a lame general, I never sulked but kept my spirit up.

"My struggle, Umno's struggle, must be sincere. It cannot be based on any personal interest," he said, adding that his perseverance has now paid off.

Noh was dropped from Najib's cabinet after the 13th general election in 2013, but was appointed as Selangor Umno liaison chief in June the same year.

"Now, in this month of Ramadan, I scored three personal victories. I became a Tan Sri, we (BN) won in Sungai Besar and I also returned to cabinet," Noh said.

In the recently-concluded Sungai Besar by-election, Noh, as BN election director, led Umno's Budiman Mohd Zohdi to victory in a three-cornered fight against Parti Amanah Negara and PAS.

Budiman's success, among others, was attributed to a swing in Chinese votes back to BN – a trend that the federal government hopes would continue in the lead-up to the 14th general election.


Related reports:

Part 1: 'Umno would suspend Guan Eng if he was party member'

Part 2: Noh Omar ready to use minister's post to woo urban voters