KUALA LUMPUR, April 7 — Perak DAP could field constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari, with an eye on making him mentri besar in the event Pakatan Harapan (PH) takes the state in the general election.
A party source told Malay Mail that Abdul Aziz may contest the Tebing Tinggi state seat, replacing Ong Boon Piow who first won in 2008 but is rumoured to be retiring soon.
The source said the state DAP is hoping Abdul Aziz can help build bridges with the Perak royal house, but claimed the move may backfire.
“It is not my place to question the state leadership’s wisdom, but I am not certain Abdul Aziz Bari is a good mentri besar candidate, seeing his personal stance against the royal institution.
“Even when he was in Selangor, the Sultan refused to grant him even a councillor’s seat,” said the source.
Another source close to Aziz’s family confirmed the matter, but said it still needed to be confirmed officially.
The DAP source added that there was also resistance from the state’s PPBM, which is concerned the move would stand in the way of the party taking the post.
Beyond Aziz’s candidacy, the source also revealed that there would be a significant reshuffling by DAP in the state.
It is speculated that DAP Socialist Youth (Dapsy) chief Wong Kah Woh will leave his Canning state seat for newcomer and Perak Dapsy secretary Jenny Choy to contest while he takes over the Ipoh Timor federal seat from Thomas Su.
Perak DAP economic development bureau chief Chong Zhemin, who was believed to be contesting the Keranji state seat, may replace the party’s state chairman, Nga Kor Ming in Taiping.
Nga, in turn, is believed to be headed to Teluk Intan in an attempt to take down Gerakan chairman Datuk Seri Mah Siew Keong, who won the seat in 2014 by defeating DAP’s Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud in a by-election.
On Dyana Sofya, the source said she will not be fielded as the party leadership was concerned about her remaining viability as a candidate following her engagement to Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari.
State DAP advisor Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham could also leave his Beruas federal seat to replace Kampar MP Ko Chung Sen who is also believed to be retiring. Perak DAP assistant secretary Paul Yong Choo Kiong is expected to replace Ngeh in Beruas.
However, Ngeh is still expected to defend his state seat in Sitiawan.
When contacted, Ngeh declined to confirm or deny the speculation, saying only that Nga has sent the state’s candidate list for the DAP central executive committee’s consideration.
“Please wait for the announcement. The state chairman Nga Kor Ming has submitted our candidate list and we are waiting for the approval.
“Once it is approved, we will make the announcement,” Ngeh said.
