The youth wing chief for Perikatan Nasional (PN), Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden, has identified five potential prime ministerial candidates for the 16th general election (GE16). In a recent podcast, he named four leaders from PAS and a single nominee from Bersatu.
During an appearance on Harakah Daily’s “Dari Jalan Pahang” podcast, Afnan, who also heads PAS Youth, listed PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang, deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, and vice-presidents Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar and Idris Ahmad as potential picks from his party.
The Alor Setar MP also named Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainudin as a possible candidate, citing his current role as the leader of the opposition.
“Personally, I’d say PAS should lead, as they have the most MPs. But if you ask from PN’s perspective, I’d say Hamzah,” he stated.
Afnan then elaborated on the qualifications of the PAS leaders: “From PAS, the Marang MP (Hadi) has served as a menteri besar and could be prime minister. The Kubang Kerian MP (Tuan Ibrahim) has also served in the Cabinet. The Kemaman MP (Samsuri), a vice-president, is currently the Terengganu menteri besar and has led the state government, so he could be prime minister, too. The same goes for the Bagan Serai MP (Idris Ahmad), who has served as a minister.”
The remarks come amid ongoing speculation about PN’s prime ministerial candidate, an issue that resurfaced after an opposition rally on July 26 called for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s resignation. The choice of a “poster boy” for GE16 has been a recurring point of contention among PN’s component parties.
Last November, PAS spiritual leader Hashim Jasin denied that Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin had been confirmed as the coalition’s official candidate, emphasizing that PAS should lead. Despite this, several leaders from Bersatu and Gerakan have continued to voice their support for Muhyiddin. On July 29, Hashim reiterated that PN would only decide on its prime minister candidate after successfully taking over the federal government in Putrajaya.
Afnan acknowledged that forming a strong governing team would be PN’s biggest challenge if they were to win the election. He also claimed that PN’s rivals were attempting to sow discord between PAS and Bersatu over what he called “trivial matters,” such as PAS’s absence from Muhyiddin’s meeting with other opposition parties last month.
“There are no problems in relations among PN MPs,” he asserted.
