.jpg)
By Mihar Dias (C) Copyright May 2023
By now, almost everyone in KL Klang Valley has heard of KJ the DJ. He speaks well, analyses politics with finesse and is able to hold his audience spellbound during most of his radio broadcasts. Most of his audiences are young urban Malays. Even our non-Malay neighbours tune in either live on YouTube. All say he is the man! One who is far-sighted and could very well lead the country someday.
But more importantly, he is a former cabinet minister in previous governments headed by Najib, Muhyiddin and Ismail Sabri Yaakob. He gained greater popularity during the Covid19 pandemic moving ahead efficiently to get everyone inoculated against the deadly disease.
His most recent ouster from UMNO must be seen as a bonus for his political career.
With expertise acquired over the years and the sympathy for being "kicked" out by Zahid are ideal ingredients to help him gain voter support in the coming state elections.
Some say he could repeat what Shahidan Kassim did in Perlis by bringing down UMNO and could be a threat to PKR controlled state of Selangor.
He might not join PAS as a candidate but could well side with Muhyiddin of BERSATU and mount a successful campaign against Anwar's own PKR.
Most political analysts are speculating that this move would pave the way towards rebuilding KJ's future political career by riding on the green wave currently spreading throughout Peninsula Malaysia.
However, the only reason that we see why KJ might not want to do that is his liberal views on life and politics.
KJ might not want to be seen as an extremist by being identified with PAS a strong partner of Perikatan Nasional that is considered by the liberal minded as a too Islamic, too fanatical and too conservative for his Western trained mind.
Anyway, he has set his sights on the premiership and this wave might just be what he needs to reach the pinnacle of power.
On the other hand, there's Azmin Ali who is a local born Selangor former Chief Minister who too would like to find his way back into politics and perhaps is more suitable than KJ.
At the same time, BERSATU is keen on capturing Negeri Sembilan, KJ's home state that needs a new Chief Minister too once they replace the incumbent.
With UMNO being seen as visibly weak, Malay solidarity would be better served by KJ leading the charge capturing Negeri Sembilan for BERSATU which needs a stronger grassroot support.
Or a state to call its own just like DAP with Penang as its base or PKR in Selangor and PAS in three major states.
However, fulfilling the above conjecture from a political observer and an armchair political critic rests upon KJ himself.
After all, being a BERSATU MB under the PN banner is not as bad as being too closely identified with the fanatical conservatives in the Islamic party led by Hadi.
Meanwhile, KJ is already familiar with many former UMNO members who form the bulk of BERSATU. He'll be more comfortable with Muhyiddin as a leader than with Hadi. Perhaps he could fit into the role of BERSATU chief should old age or ill health force Muhyiddin to retire prematurely.
On the other hand, BERSATU considered an alternative to UMNO that is already withering could well serve KJ's own ambition to be premier one day with a stronger Malay support base than his former party.
KJ might want to consider the possibility that UMNO may not be the only way to the top political post in the country.
In sum, it's up to KJ whether he wants to be active as a politician or stay temporarily out (Keluar Jap) as DJ for five years or soldier on as a state honcho with a chance to bring Negeri Sembilan on par with neighbouring Selangor as a strong economic powerhouse under his leadership.
If the MB route to premiership does not work out the job as DJ on Hot FM is always available.
Mihar Dias is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact Newswav.