BN mulls fielding candidate for Nenggiri if polls held, says Zahid

PUTRAJAYA: Barisan Nasional may want to field a candidate should a by-election be held for the Nenggiri state seat in Kelantan, says its chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Ahmad Zahid, who is Deputy Prime Minister, pointed out that the Barisan candidate had only lost by a margin of 800-odd votes in the state polls.

“We are the underdog there, but we will still prepare for any eventuality of a by-election,” he said on Friday (June 21).

In the state polls held in August last year, Bersatu candidate Mohd Azizi Abu Naim had won the Nenggiri seat under the PAS ticket, defeating Barisan’s Ab Aziz Yusoff with a 810-majority.

Ahmad Zahid said while Barisan respects the decision made by the Kelantan Legislative Assembly Speaker to declare the seat vacant, the ruling to be made by the court on the status of the Nenggiri seat must also be respected.

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“There are different views and opinions cited by political analysts and legal practitioners on the matter. Our stand is for the court to make a decision,” he added.

On June 19, Kelantan state assembly Speaker Datuk Mohd Nik Amar Nik Abdullah had declared that the Nenggiri state seat was vacant with immediate effect.

The seat was held by rogue Bersatu assemblyman Mohd Azizi.

Mohd Azizi had said that he would take the matter to court, claiming that the Speaker was hasty in vacating his seat.

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The Bersatu rogue said the Speaker had announced the vacancy without replying to a question whether Bersatu representatives in Kelantan come under the purview of PAS.

Mohd Azizi, who is Gua Musang MP, had earlier in the month lost his membership in Bersatu, an Opposition party for failing to respond to an official letter requiring him to pledge his loyalty to the party by May 31.

Mohd Azizi, along with five other Bersatu MPs and a Selangor state lawmaker, had over the past year defied their party and declared support for leaders in the unity government, including Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.