KUALA LUMPUR – Former army general Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi Raja Mohamed Noor has been picked to run on the Barisan Nasional (BN) ticket in the Kemaman parliamentary by-election scheduled for December 2.
This was announced at Umno headquarters here by BN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The Kemaman by-election is being called following the Terengganu Election Court’s ruling on September 26, which nullified the victory of Che Alias Hamid (PAS) from Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the seat in GE15, after the petitioner successfully proved the existence of elements of corruption during the campaign period.
The Election Commission (EC) set the polling day on December 2 and nomination day on November 18, while early voting is on November 28.
Zahid, who is also Umno president, said the coalition decided to go with a candidate that is not among the Umno leadership.
He added that Kemaman is not a PAS stronghold even though BN did not garner enough votes in the 2022 general election last November to be awarded the seat.
“However, due to certain issues as well as slander and hatred against Umno in particular and BN, as well as the extraordinary use of financial resources at that time, we lacked votes in Kemaman.
“This time, with the agreement of the state liaison bodies, division heads, women and youth wings in Terengganu, the time has come for us to support a candidate, who is outside the party leadership, to represent BN to contest in Kemaman.”
Zahid added that Raja Mohamed Affandi has contributed a lot to the country outside of politics and is ready to repay Umno as his being in the government is thanks to Umno and BN.
He said Raja Mohamed Affandi, who grew up in Kemaman, is seen as able to garner the support of the people and wrest back the sat based on his leadership in the army.
“He has a very strong background in the military career and he has gone through this professional career diligently,” he said.
Asked about the UMNO and BN machinery’s acceptance of Raja Mohamed Affandi’s selection as BN’s candidate, Ahmad Zahid expressed confidence in the backing of party members and voters in Kemaman. – November 13, 2023