He said the party’s grassroots would want to see Umno as the dominant force and as a party daring to make bold decisions.
“A DPM’s post will not help fix the image that the party’s leaders and MPs are weak, an image they got after Umno reiterated its support for the Perikatan Nasional government,” he added.
James Chin of the University of Tasmania’s Asia Institute said he believed Zahid was the most unlikely candidate because of his corruption trial.
“I think it will most likely be Hishammuddin because he is the middle-of-the-road candidate with the least enemies,” he said. “But anything can happen. It could even be someone who is not on the list.”
Chin also said Umno was probably seeking control of key economic ministries as this would be critical to patronage and the retention of support. Such positions, he noted, were now held by those aligned with Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
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