It’s certain – Muhyiddin no longer a PM candidate, says Samsuri

2026-03-05 - 07:03

Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin (left) reportedly said PN chairman Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar was not necessarily the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate for GE16. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA: Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar has issued a stinging response to Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin for saying that the Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman might not necessarily be the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate. In a Facebook post, Samsuri said many reporters had reached out to him for a response to Muhyiddin, who was prime minister from March 2020 to August 2021. He said that regardless of who becomes PN’s prime ministerial candidate, the priority at this juncture should be on bolstering the coalition and improving cooperation among component parties ahead of the next general election. “What is certain is that Muhyiddin is no longer the prime ministerial candidate,” said Samsuri, who took over the PN chairmanship from Muhyiddin on Feb 22. Muhyiddin reportedly said Samsuri was not necessarily PN’s prime ministerial candidate for GE16 despite his appointment as coalition chairman. The Pagoh MP maintained that the matter had not been discussed by Bersatu and PAS. This came after PAS Youth floated the idea of Samsuri being the Islamic party’s candidate for prime minister. Muhyiddin, the Bersatu president, was unanimously nominated as the party’s prime ministerial candidate at its general assembly last September. PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang later said the party wanted PN’s prime ministerial candidate to be a leader under 70 years old and physically healthy, an apparent snub of Muhyiddin, who is 78.