Perikatan Nasional chairman named Malaysia’s new opposition leader
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Perikatan Nasional chairman Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar (left) replaces former Bersatu deputy president Hamzah Zainuddin as Opposition Leader.
PHOTO: BERNAMA
PETALING JAYA - The chairman of Malaysia’s Perikatan Nasional (PN) opposition alliance, Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, has been appointed as parliamentary opposition leader.
The appointment of Dr Ahmad Samsuri, who is also Terengganu’s Menteri Besar, was decided by the coalition’s supreme council on May 16.
He replaces Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin, who was stripped of the position after he was expelled from Bersatu party, which is part of the PN alliance, on Feb 13.
In a statement, PN secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan said the Perikatan supreme council met on May 16 to restructure the coalition’s state chapters in preparation for the next general election.
“We have agreed to appoint Ahmad Samsuri, who is also the Kemaman MP, as the Opposition Leader (in the Dewan Rakyat),” he said.
“The meeting also agreed in principle to accept electoral cooperations or an electoral pact with certain parties aligned with the struggle and interests of Perikatan.”
The statement also listed out the heads of state Perikatan chapters except for Negeri Sembilan.
Among the heads appointed are former Perlis Menteri Besar Shaidan Kassin; Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor; Gerakan president Dominic Lau (Penang); Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu (Perak); Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali (Selangor); and Datuk Mohd Radzi Md Jidin who heads the Federal Territories’ chapter of Perikatan.
Media speculation of the appointment of a new Opposition Leader had surfaced after Mr Hamzah, then Bersatu deputy president, was expelled from his party.
Malaysia’s House of Representatives, also known as the Dewan Rakyat, will convene again in June. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
