The Umno chess game

The Umno chess game August 24 2008 - Malaysian Insider PERMATANG PAUH, Aug 24 — When Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak swore in a neighbourhood mosque here that he did not know the late Altantuya Shaariibuu, his oath stirred much excitement. It was as much for the Permatang Pauh by-election as for his own political future. "I am not afraid to utter these holy words in a mosque because I am speaking the truth," Najib said on Friday night. He has been battling accusations that he had an affair with Ms Altantuya, who was later found dead, and that his wife had a hand in her murder. This had been rally fodder for opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim who gleefully used it to deflect attention from his sodomy case. There is even a poster of Ms Altantuya in the main town of Seberang Jaya, with a plea for justice. The Mongolian's murder is, however, less of a red-hot issue here than on the larger political stage where Najib is battling for his future in Umno. His oath is thus timely. Although Permatang Pauh is a battle with their arch rival, many Umno leaders are treating the campaign as a sort of chess game within Umno. In their eyes, the Barisan Nasional has already been checkmated, and they have moved onto a new game - using the campaign as leverage in the internal Umno leadership fight. The by-election campaign takes place at a time when Umno is facing internal rifts, and as its grassroots elections are in full swing. Bickering and internal distractions had caused the Umno campaign to sputter for days even as the opposition machinery roared to life with hundreds of volunteers. Even up to now, Anwar's campaign is far more energetic and organised. For the first few days, the Umno campaign almost seemed a one-man show by Najib who is in charge of the BN election machinery. He has been here every day, travelling daily from Kuala Lumpur where he has to attend to government business. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi made three brief appearances, as did a handful of other ministers and Umno politicians. There was a noticeable lack of big names for a poll which had been dubbed the mother of all by-elections. "It was the Umno branch meetings that distracted the party workers, but they will be there in full force from the weekend," said an Umno leader. But privately, Umno's top leaders have blamed it on internal Umno politicking. It is learnt that whispers had gone around among some party members that a defeat for Anwar here would mean a victory for Abdullah. And a show of support for Abdullah is the last thing that his enemies want at this time. There is still much unhappiness over his plan to hand over power to Najib only in 2010, and some hope that a severe thumping in Permatang Pauh could be ammunition to force an earlier transition. An Umno branch leader in Permatang Pauh told The Sunday Times that there are still strong feelings against Abdullah. On top of that, there is an intense struggle for the Umno divisional chief's post in Permatang Pauh, in which the BN by-election candidate Datuk Arif Shah Omar Shah is an aspirant. His selection as candidate boosted his standing, and alienated the other contenders. It took a lot of persuasion by Najib to convince them not to sabotage the BN campaign, and Arif Shah eventually had to pledge not to contest an Umno post if he won the by-election. It did not help that there was a sense of defeat from the start. An Umno MP, who has not bothered to campaign, told The Sunday Times: "What's the point? We have lost already." Some in Umno's top ranks even say they do not rule out that some top guns may be hedging their bets by staying away, not knowing if Anwar was really on the cusp of seizing power or making an audacious bluff. The Umno campaign has picked up in the last few days, but the tide still appears to favour Anwar. Even the most optimistic count in Umno gives the party only a few additional voters, and that's not enough to win. — Singapore Straits Times ...source