Kamarul Zaman Yusoff said Nik Omar, who is the eldest son of the late Kelantan menteri besar Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, could improve his chances if he supported his father’s struggle for shariah laws like hudud.
“If he joined Amanah still firmly believing in the stand of Nik Aziz on shariah issues, he could be accepted despite having left PAS.
“However, if he is seen as pursuing the cause of Amanah, which is friendly with DAP, then it would be difficult for the village people to accept him,” Kamarul told FMT.
Nik Omar was a surprise candidate fielded by Amanah for Chempaka, the seat formerly represented by Nik Aziz. It will see a three-cornered fight between Nik Omar, the incumbent Ahmad Fathan Mahmood of PAS and Mohamad Fareez Noor Amran of Barisan Nasional (BN).
Kamarul said another hurdle in Nik Omar’s path was the opposition of his mother Tuan Sabariah Tuan Ishak to his candidacy as she had thrown full backing behind Ahmad Fathan.
Kamarul also criticised Amanah’s strategy to extol the entry of Nik Omar into the party, warning that it could cause a backlash.
He said Nik Omar was an ordinary member of PAS and Amanah’s decision to glorify him as an Islamic icon showed the party did not acknowledge its adviser Ahmad Awang and deputy adviser Abdul Ghani Samsudin as religious leaders.
“I consider the views of some analysts that Nik Omar’s entry into the general election will cause a giant wave to sweep through the Malay community as extreme.
“I feel the exaltation of Nik Omar is not very objective since he was never a top PAS leader, and was entering politics on the strength of his father’s influence rather than any of his own.
“Amanah is risking a backlash by glorifying Nik Omar as it could undermine the position of the party’s own religious leaders like Ahmad Awang and Abdul Ghani,” he said.
Kamarul also said the entry of Nik Omar into Amanah would have no impact on Kelantan or the country except in Chempaka.
“No PAS members have followed him to join Amanah,” he added.
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