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KUALA LUMPUR – The curtain will finally fall on Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz’s career in politics as he will bid goodbye to the arena he has called home for more than 40 years once the current parliamentary term ends.
Announcing his retirement to The Vibes, the Padang Rengas MP said he believes the time is ripe for future leaders, like Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, to take the reins from the current generation of politicians.
Nazri said he believes he has achieved all he could in his time in Umno, and with no political ambition for higher positions, feels it is only wise for him to quit now.
“I’m going to give up everything once the current term ends, including my position as Padang Rengas division chief. I will not contest in the coming Umno elections or in the general election,” he said in a phone interview.
“Even if the party leadership persuades me to contest, I will reject it. They keep saying the people (of Padang Rengas) want me, but this will never end.
I don’t wish to overstay my welcome. You never know, one day people might just wake up and get fed up with you. So, before that happens, I better pack up and go.”
Nazri said his decision to call it quits is also motivated by the fact that his personal mission to make an Umno member, and in particular, Ismail Sabri, the prime minister has been achieved.
The party maverick played a key role in elevating Ismail Sabri to the country’s top post.
He led a group of MPs against president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s faction prior to Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s resignation as prime minister. The movement was initially in support of Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein before it pledged allegiance to Ismail Sabri.
“I’m absolutely happy, relieved and satisfied that Ismail Sabri is now the prime minister, and that my hard work paid off. As a leader myself, it is incumbent upon me to see that my party is strong,” said Nazri.
“Now that Umno is back in the prime minister’s position, I think the party has returned to the right track. I’m very happy about it. I believe Ismail Sabri can lead the party forward.”
Nazri joined politics in 1978 at just 24 years old, when he was elected as an Umno Youth executive committee member before going on to become Barisan Nasional Youth chief from 1990 to 1994.
He was also an Umno Supreme Council member for 28 years from 1990 to 2018, when the Umno-led BN government lost federal power to Pakatan Harapan.
That year, Nazri was appointed BN secretary-general, but he was removed less than a year later, after issuing comments that did not go down well with component parties MCA and MIC.
He has held a number of ministerial positions, being in charge of entrepreneur development (1999 to 2004), legal affairs (2004 to 2013), and tourism and culture (2013 to 2018).
Nazri also has a perfect record in the six general elections he ran in, winning every single time since his debut in Chenderoh in 1995. He defended the seat in 1999, and later won Padang Rengas (rebranded from Chenderoh) in 2004, 2008, 2013 and 2018.
The outspoken lawmaker said his decision to leave politics at the end of the current term is not a difficult one, having contemplated it for almost a decade.
I’ve been trying to leave politics since 2013, but they (Umno) keep putting my name as a candidate in the polls. The 2018 election result, when BN lost power, it was a blessing in disguise for me.
“When I was no longer part of the government, I felt like it was a good thing, and I made up my mind to quit. Nineteen years as a minister, what else do I want? I have no more political ambitions,” he said, adding that it has been an honour to serve the people of Padang Rengas for more than two decades.
Asked if he has any regrets during his career, Nazri said: “No, no regrets at all. I’m very happy that I have served the nation to the best of my ability.” – The Vibes, August 28, 2021
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