With the jockeying for position within Umno ahead of the upcoming party polls, Perlis BN chief Shahidan Kassim is weighing up the possibility of throwing his hat into the ring for the post of vice-president.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, Shahidan said that besides a possible bid for the vice-presidency, he will defend his seat on the party’s supreme council.

“I have taken the forms for Umno vice-president and supreme council. I am considering running for vice-president, but will definitely defend my seat on the council,” he said.

Shahidan, who has emerged of late as a central figure in the Perlis menteri besar imbroglio, noted that he wanted to kick-start a “resurgence” in Umno.

“I wish to start a ‘resurgence movement’ in Umno, starting with Perlis, where the party won a two-thirds majority in the 14th general election,” he said.

Last month, Shahidan led a group of nine representatives who boycotted the swearing-in of Perlis menteri besar Azlan Man, claiming he did not command the support of the majority. 

They held a press conference in Kuala Lumpur on the same day, calling for Azlan to be sacked from Umno. 

Perlis remains the only state without a state assembly since the May 9 election, despite its two-thirds majority.

Following the resignation of Najib Abdul Razak as Umno president after the polls, a number of leaders have stepped up to offer themselves for the party’s top posts.

Thus far, the Umno leaders who have expressed interest in the three slots for Umno vice-president include youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, former ministers Mustapa Mohamed, Mahdzir Khalid, Johari Abdul Ghani, and Ismail Sabri Yaakob, former Johor menteri besar Mohamed Khaled Nordin, and former deputy minister Tajuddin Abdul Rahman.

Ousted Negeri Sembilan menteri besar Mohamad Hasan in gunning for deputy president, while the current acting president, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, is looking to make the post officially his.

Nomination for the long-delayed party election has been fixed from June 1 to 17, while voting takes place on June 30.