Rafidah ready to face challenger Shahrizat for Wanita No. 1 post
WANITA Umno chief Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz’s razor-sharp tongue is legendary.
When reporters pressed her on her ties with her deputy Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, who is challenging her for the top post, Malaysia’s own Iron Lady retorted: “What do you want me to do. Sleep with her?”
“Even before this, we did not dakap luarbiasa (hug all that much) ... but we are not Israel and Palestine either,” she said in her signature quotable-quote style.
On talking terms: Rafidah (right) talking to Shahrizat after the pre-council meeting Tuesday.
It goes without saying that Rafidah still feels the sting of betrayal from Shahrizat.
The incumbent had promised to pass the baton over to Shahrizat in June 2009 – six months after the party elections that had been scheduled for December 2008.
Initially, Shahrizat had agreed to the transition plan and even gave her word of honour at an exco meeting and a press conference not to take on Rafidah.
But later she had a change of heart. Her supporters convinced her that Rafidah would break her word and not hand over the post in June.
And not long after, word was out on the ground that Shahrizat was prepared to go up against her boss.
When the personable Shahrizat picked up enough nominations to go for either the Wanita chief or to defend her deputy’s post, she opted for the former.
The choice was made easier by the fact that another candidate, Datuk Kamilia Ibrahim, too had qualified to contest the deputy’s post and had no intention of backing down.
Shahrizat’s side said it would be unfair for Rafidah to expect not to be challenged for the top post and yet allow a contest for her anointed successor (Shahrizat) for the number two spot.
Rafidah’s side shot back with claims that Shahrizat had every intention of contesting the Wanita top post from the start and both Shahrizat and Kamilia had forged a pact even before the nominations to get the number one and two posts.
The contest has been a little nasty. Rafidah’s and Shahrizat’s supporters have attacked each other in a slew of SMSes.
There have also been claims that some women had been “locked up” and grilled in a room in Johor Baru after Shahrizat attracted louder applause than Rafidah at an Umno meet-the-candidates session there.
On the ground, some of the women are saying that Shahrizat is in the lead, while others say that Rafidah is the incoming president Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak’s preferred choice.
Contests, of course, are nothing new to Rafidah.
This is her fourth face-off for the Wanita top post, having won it twice (1984 and 2000) and lost it once in 1996 to exco member Datuk Dr Siti Zaharah Sulaiman. In 2000, Rafidah wrested it back from Dr Siti Zaharah.
But this is by far the most serious Wanita contest in recent years, as it is the movement’s top two leaders battling it out for the seat.
There is concern that it would split the movement, which is often seen as the backbone of Umno, especially in house-to-house canvassing of votes for the Barisan Nasional in general elections.
It is really unfortunate that the Wanita contest has come to this.
In the last general election, Shahrizat lost her Lembah Pantai parliamentary seat, while Rafidah retained her Kuala Kangsar constituency.
But when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced his Cabinet line-up, he dealt Wanita a huge blow by not appointing any of the movement’s leaders as minister.
(Some would argue that Datuk Azalina Othman Said represents Wanita but those within the wing say she was never within the movement, is not an exco member and thus does not represent the wing.)
At present, Malay women face a multitude of issues, including some long-standing ones such as the difficulty in getting divorce, getting their husbands to pay child support, getting promotions, having to constantly fight for more seats in Parliament and other forms of equality.
The women too have been promised 30% of the country’s decision-making posts but that has yet to be realised – showing yet again that the women here still have a long way to go.
The bottom line is that in this contest, Wanita Umno will lose out.
With two of its most capable leaders slugging it out, it is a sad fact that one will have to go.
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