Perlis MB loses in bid for Arau Pas chief post
ARAU: The Pas Arau division polls delivered several surprises as Menteri Besar Shukri Ramli failed in his bid to unseat incumbent Solahudin Azmi from the division chief position.
Two state executive councillors in Shukri's state administration also failed in the race for the deputy division chief and vice chief positions.
The biggest shock came with the defeat of Shukri, who is also the state Pas commissioner in a straight fight with Solahudin Azmi.
He garnered only 43 votes, while Solahudin secured 128 votes.
For the deputy division chief position, the state Youth and Sports Committee chairman, Mohd Ridzuan Hashim, who is also Guar Sanji asemblyman, won comfortably with 135 votes, defeating the incumbent and current Perlis state State Assembly speaker, Rus'ele Eizan, who received just 34 votes.
In the contest for vice division chief position, the state Agriculture, Plantations and Consumer Affairs Commitee chairman Razali Saad, was defeated after receiving only 39 votes compared to the incumbent Mohd Yusairi Mansor, who won with 130 votes.
The Arau Pas division held its annual general meeting today, with participation from 173 delegates representing 60 branches.
In his speech, Solahudin expressed gratitude for being re-elected to the position.
"This outcome reflects the delegates' confidence in the current leadership team, and it does not diminish the significant contributions of state leaders in steering the administration based on Islamic principles and collective leadership.
"Losing in this election doesn't imply a rejection of the state government's leadership, but rather it's a normal process within Pas' mature political culture.
"The fact that there was competition in this election proves that Pas practises genuine grassroots democracy," he said.
He added that the defeat of several state leaders should not be interpreted as a sign of rejection.
"Instead, it offers an opportunity to further strengthen each leader's role within the leadership ranks.
"What's more important is that those elected must now shoulder the great responsibility of leading the community," he added.
As for the Kangar Pas division, its annual general meeting is scheduled for June 28, where a contest is expected between the incumbent chief, Yussaine Yahya, and Senator Baharudin Ahmad.
Meanwhile, in Padang Besar, the upcoming annual meeting on June 22 is also drawing attention as the incumbent chief, Saad Seman will be challenged by fellow state Exco member Muhammad Azmir Azizan.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
an hour ago
- Malay Mail
Perlis MB fails to oust Arau PAS chief as allies suffer major defeats in state party polls
KANGAR, June 22 – Allies of Perlis Menteri Besar Shukri Ramli have reportedly suffered a series of defeats in PAS' party elections in the Arau division, including Shukri himself who failed to unseat the incumbent division chief. Malaysiakini reported that Shukri lost his bid for the division chief post to Solahhudin Azmi, the current officeholder and Perlis PAS election director. 'Shukri failed to win the post of Arau PAS division chief, losing to Solahhudin Azmi,' the report quoted an anonymous party source. Razali Saad, another ally of Shukri and a Perlis state executive councillor, also reportedly lost his position as division vice-chief to Nur Yusairy Mansor. Meanwhile, Perlis state assembly speaker Russele Eizan was unseated as division deputy chief by Ridzuan Hashim, a rank-and-file member. Russele also holds the role of Perlis Perikatan Nasional vice-chairman II, but his alignment with Shukri remains unclear. These losses come amid previous controversies involving Shukri's family, notably his son Syafeeq who was charged last year with submitting a false claim. In May 2024, Syafeeq pleaded not guilty in the Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur to a charge of submitting a false claim amounting to RM19,505.10. He was charged with submitting a document, 'Pesanan Kerajaan (Bekalan/Perkhidmatan) Kerajaan Negeri Perlis', containing a false claim to Nurul Nabilah Mohd Sukri, an Administrative Assistant at the District Administration Division, Perlis State Secretary's Office, on February 19 this year with an intent to deceive the latter. The charge was framed under Section 18 of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009 (Act 694), punished under Section 24(2) of the same law, which provides imprisonment for up to 20 years and a fine of not less than five times the amount or value of the bribe or RM10,000, whichever is higher upon conviction.
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Iran threatens ‘more devastating' response to Israel's attacks
TEHRAN: Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian warned Saturday of a 'more devastating' retaliation should Israel's nine-day bombing campaign continue, saying the Islamic republic would not halt its nuclear programme 'under any circumstances'. Israel said on Saturday it had killed three more Iranian commanders in its unprecedented offensive, and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar claimed Tehran's alleged progress towards a nuclear weapon had been set back by two years. 'We will do everything that we can do there in order to remove this threat,' Saar told the German newspaper Bild, adding that Israel would keep up its onslaught. Israel and Iran have traded wave after wave of devastating strikes since Israel launched its aerial campaign on June 13, saying Tehran was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon. On Saturday, Israel said it had attacked Iran's Isfahan nuclear site for a second time, with the UN nuclear watchdog reporting that a centrifuge manufacturing workshop had been hit. Later Saturday Iran's Mehr news agency said Israel had launched strikes on the southern city of Shiraz, which hosts military bases. And early Sunday, Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced that a 'vast' wave of 'suicide drones' had been launched against 'strategic targets' across Israel. Iran denies seeking an atomic bomb, and on Saturday Pezeshkian said its right to pursue a civilian nuclear programme 'cannot be taken away... by threats or war'. 'Not prepared to negotiate' In a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, Pezeshkian said Iran was 'ready to discuss and cooperate to build confidence in the field of peaceful nuclear activities'. 'However, we do not agree to reduce nuclear activities to zero under any circumstances,' he added, according to Iran's official IRNA news agency. Referring to the Israeli attacks, he said: 'Our response to the continued aggression of the Zionist regime will be more devastating.' Iran's armed forces threatened to strike shipments of military aid to Israel 'from any country'. Israel's main arms supplier is the United States, whose President Donald Trump warned on Friday that Tehran had a 'maximum' of two weeks to avoid possible American air strikes as Washington weighed whether to join Israel's campaign. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Istanbul on Saturday for a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to discuss the conflict. Top diplomats from Britain, France and Germany met Araghchi in Geneva on Friday and urged him to resume nuclear talks with the United States that had been derailed by the war. But Araghchi said Saturday: 'Iran is ready to consider diplomacy once again, and once aggression is stopped and the aggressor is held accountable for the crimes committed.' 'We're not prepared to negotiate with them (the Americans) anymore, as long as the aggression continues'. Hundreds killed Trump, dismissive of European diplomatic efforts, said he was unlikely to ask Israel to stop its attacks to get Iran back to the table. 'If somebody's winning, it's a little bit harder to do,' he said of Israel's campaign. Any US involvement would likely feature powerful bunker-busting bombs that no other country possesses to destroy an underground uranium enrichment facility in Fordo. US B-2 stealth bombers capable of carrying bunker busters were flying across the Pacific Ocean, according to tracking data and media reports, fuelling speculation over their intended mission. Iran's Huthi allies in Yemen on Saturday threatened to resume their attacks on US vessels in the Red Sea if Washington joined the war, despite a recent ceasefire agreement. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said Friday that, based on its sources and media reports, at least 657 people had been killed in Iran, including 263 civilians. Iran's health ministry on Saturday gave a toll of more than 400 people killed and 3,056 in the Israeli strikes. Iran's retaliatory strikes have killed at least 25 people in Israel, according to official figures. The Israeli military said it had launched a fresh wave of strikes Saturday in the area of southern Iran's Bandar Abbas, targeting drone storage sites and a weapons facility. Iran's Tasnim news agency said air defences were activated in the area. Overnight, Iran said it had targeted central Israel with drones and missiles. Israeli rescuers said there were no casualties after an Iranian drone struck a residential building. Revolutionary Guards spokesman Mohammad Ali Naini said Iran's armed forces had 'hit 14 strategic military' targets in the overnight attack, including Haifa's Sail Tower, the city's oil refinery and the Ovda airbase. On the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, Israel said Saturday that an Iranian terror plot targeting Israeli citizens had been 'thwarted'. 'Tired' Israel's National Public Diplomacy Directorate said more than 450 missiles had been fired at the country so far, along with about 400 drones. In Tel Aviv, where residents have faced regular Iranian strikes for nine days, some expressed growing fatigue under the constant threat from Iran. The streets of Tehran, meanwhile, were still largely quiet Saturday, though a few cafes and restaurants were open. In the afternoon, supporters of the government gathered briefly in front of the headquarters of state television to wave Iranian, Palestinian and Hezbollah flags to a soundtrack of electronic music whose lyrics called for the 'death of Israel'. Western powers have repeatedly expressed concerns about the expansion of Iran's nuclear programme, questioning in particular the country's accelerated uranium enrichment. International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi has said Iran is the only country without nuclear weapons to enrich uranium to 60 percent. However, his agency had 'no indication' of the existence of a 'systematic programme' in Iran to produce a bomb. Grossi told CNN it would be 'pure speculation' to guess at how long it would take Iran to develop one.
The Sun
13 hours ago
- The Sun
Macron says Europeans to ‘accelerate negotiations' with Iran
PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday that France and its European partners would ramp up talks with Iran following more than a week of hostilities between the Islamic republic and Israel. On Friday, British, French, German and EU top diplomats held talks in Geneva with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi a week after Israel started its bombardment. They urged Iran to revive diplomatic efforts with the United States to find a solution in the standoff over its nuclear programme, but Tehran warned it could only consider diplomacy once Israel halted its bombardment. On Saturday, Macron said talks will be stepped up in an effort to avoid greater conflict. 'I am convinced that a path exists to end war and avoid even greater dangers,' Macron said in English on X after holding phone talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. 'To achieve this, we will accelerate the negotiations led by France and its European partners with Iran.' Macron reiterated that 'Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons.' 'It is up to Iran to provide full guarantees that its intentions are peaceful,' he added. He once again demanded that Iran must release French nationals Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who have been held since May 2022 on espionage charges their families reject. 'Their inhumane detention is unjust,' Macron said. 'I expect them to return to France.'
