A veiled social media exchange between Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his deputy, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, continued today, with the Umno president appearing to respond to the prime minister’s Facebook post from New Delhi, India.
In a Facebook post today, Zahid thanked his followers for tuning in to his policy speech at the Umno General Assembly yesterday, “whether you were in the country or abroad”.
“God willing, I will deliver the closing address this afternoon. Continue to follow me, wherever you are,” he said.
Zahid’s post came hours after Anwar, who arrived in New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit, referred to himself as a “guru” in a Facebook post.
Anwar said he hoped his “students” would learn how “Madani Diplomacy” was translated into practice, ending the post with “Slayyy” and a nail-polish emoji featuring a yellow hand and pink manicured nails.
‘Guru’ reference follows petrol subsidy criticism
The Gen Z-style post appeared to reference Zahid’s use of the word “guru” in a remark criticising the government’s handling of the Budi95 petrol subsidy programme.
Zahid had said the subsidised fuel quota was reduced from 300 litres to 200 litres a month in April before being restored to 300 litres on Sept 1, arguing that the reversals had caused confusion among the public.
“Cukup, cukuplah, guru. Listen to our voices, guru. We can do better than what the guru has done,” he said.
In the same speech, Zahid also showed his familiarity with Gen Z lingo, urging Umno’s younger members to “slay” and “flex”.
Tensions denied after report
Zahid’s remarks came after he denied last Sunday that his relationship with Anwar had become increasingly strained.
This followed a Bloomberg report that tensions between the two leaders were worsening, with recent Cabinet meetings taking place for shorter periods than usual.
Bloomberg reported that the tensions stemmed from Zahid’s decision for Barisan Nasional to contest against Pakatan Harapan in the Johor and Negeri Sembilan state elections, as well as DAP’s pressure for institutional reforms.
