What happened in Perlis? – Malaysia Today

Murray Hunt

In the 15th general election, Perlis had been an UMNO stronghold. Even after Pakatan Harapan came to power in 2018, UMNO managed to win 10 of the 15 seats in the state assembly. However, in November last year, UMNO lost all its seats, with current Menteri Besar Azlan Man suffering a crushing defeat in the Pakatan Harapan seat, winning only 18% of the votes.

Many believe that this result came about because of former Umno warlord Shahidan Kasim’s anger at Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who wisely or foolishly sacked Shahidan Kasim before the general election. Shahidan convincingly retained his federal seat in Arau by the largest margin ever. Umno candidate Rozabil Abdul Rahman, who was chosen after Zahid abandoned Shahidan, received only 17.62% of the votes.

Perlis Menteri Besar Mohd Shukri Ramli’s new car worth RM 300,000+++ was bought for him by MBI and therefore is not subject to public accountability. There is no precedent in the state of Perlis.

The real reason for Azlan Man and UMNO’s disastrous defeat in the Perlis state election was Azlan Man’s poor treatment of businessmen and contractors. These disaffected people supported a strong movement against Azlan Man and his government.

Azlan Man was sent to Perlis by former Prime Minister Najib Razak, who wanted a professional and capable person to run the state. Azlan Man was a diplomat and well-educated, and he seemed to fit the bill. The corruption index of past state ministers was low. Azlan Man wanted to reverse this situation. Azlan Man’s “golden parachute” went against the UMNO grassroots in the state at the time.

Unfortunately, Azlan did the exact opposite of what people expected, he built his own empire, was self-absorbed and even extremely racist, which was unacceptable in the traditional harmony of Perlis.

Azlan is currently facing 10 charges of corruption and money laundering in the Kuala Lumpur High Court and is fortunate not to face more charges. The case is currently ongoing.

Mohd Shukri Ramli, the PAS MP in the state assembly since 2013, became the Menteri Besar in November last year. Then in May 2024, Mohd Shukri’s son was charged with corruption for falsifying claims. The word around town is that there may be more of this to come.

To complicate the corruption case, Mohd Shukri’s son married the daughter of PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang. This was very unfair to PAS.

There is a lot of discontent with Mohd Shukri’s behaviour in Perlis. Some of those who met with him claimed that Mohd Shukri insulted the Menteri Besar and even hurt the Menteri Besar’s feelings. The Menteri Besar cannot fire the Menteri Besar. Under the constitution, the Menteri Besar can only appoint one Menteri Besar. Only a member of the state assembly can move a motion of no confidence against the Menteri Besar.

There are rumours in Perlis that PAS MPs in the state assembly are planning to launch a no-confidence vote against Menteri Besar Mohamad Shukri. Such a move would remove him from office and could mean a new state election in Perlis soon.