wfol.tv : Who is Nizar Jamaluddin, the winning factor for the PR

source : http://wfol.tv/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=487&Itemid=9 Malaysia Watch: Nizar the decisive winner for the Opposition Ali Cordoba - Riau, Indonesia – Tuesday 12th May 2009 In him the Party Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) has found a unification factor, a type of politicians who exists only in countries that are booming with a rising democratic culture. The populist figure of Nizar Jamaluddin spells trouble for the Barisan National (BN) and is bound to span a positive image of the PAS and the PR further, says analysts. "We are a day before the remembrances of the events that led to the May 13 riots in both Singapore and Malaysia, and there we have a Malay-Muslim political leader from the PAS who is dominating the political landscape from the state of Perak," said MIS. "Nizar can become a national figure in no time though it is difficult to see him hold a very top post within the PAS for the moment," added the seasoned analyst. "Malaysia need more people, politicians like Nizar. People who can cement the race differences not by new policies but by the inner understanding of all the races needs altogether," he said. "At this moment his political capital is higher than any other political figures in the BN and he has taken over the popularity mantle from many of the PR politicians too. He has the winning smile, the style and the attitude of a true national political figure," he added. This is what has given the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) a very good chance of reclaiming the state in fresh new polls that should be held anytime soon after the probable dissolution of the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) of Perak. It is also his aura, his simple yet fantastic run of victories against the BN from March 2008 to the recent Parliamentary elections in Bukit Gantang which he won upper handed and now the court ruling that restored his rightful place as Menteri Besar of Perak, said other observers to WFOLtv. The AFP, French News Agency, reported that Husam Musa, vice-president of the PAS said he hoped the Perak sultan would now give his consent for new polls. "A defeat would be another humiliation for the Barisan Nasional which suffered unprecedented losses in general elections a year ago, and has lost a string of by-elections since then," wrote the AFP. However, it is the charismatic Nizar who may be the catapult that will bring a yet unprecedented victory to the PR if the elections are held, said the observers. Though the chances of the BN are not to be discarded in the state of Perak where it appears Malay-Muslim sentiments has shifted somehow in favor of the United Malays National Organization (Umno), most observers tend to agree that Nizar's personality and his 'midas' touch with victory so far will make a difference. The Pakatan Rakyat won five states and a third of parliamentary seats in the March 2008 polls - its best performance since independence half a century ago - and another victory in Perak will help it maintain momentum. Husam Musa, vice-president of the Islamic party PAS which is a member of the opposition alliance, said he hoped the Perak sultan would now give his consent for new polls. 'It is not about whether we are confident of winning the state again or not but it is a matter of principle for us to go back to the voters to resolve the political impasse that has existed for the past three months,' he told AFP. – AFP Nizar's win in the High Court is a major to the BN since the court also ruled that its take over of the Perak state was illegal and that the opposition was still in charge. Perak state has been in political limbo since February, when the Barisan Nasional coalition, which rules nationally, tried to oust the Pakatan Rakyat opposition alliance which won the state in elections last year. After defections cost the opposition its balance of power, the coalition ruled out holding fresh polls and installed its own leadership, a move which triggered brawling and protests at the state assembly last week. However, High Court Justice Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahim ruled on Monday that the Pakatan Rakyat Chief Minister Nizar Jamaluddin was still the rightful ruler despite being sacked by the state's sultan. 'He is, and was, at all material times the chief minister of Perak,' Judge Abdul Aziz told the court, saying that Mr Nizar could only be dismissed by a vote of no confidence in the assembly. Nizar, who has been forced to vacate the MB office, made a triumphant return to the government offices amid statements that he will be meeting the sultan soon to seek the dissolution of the state Legislative Assembly. 'It is an historic day for all who love democracy and will be remembered for years and years to come,' he said in a statement and it is this kind of statements that motivates the opposition and galvanizes the crowd, said some foreign experts. Datuk Seri Ir. Haji Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin (born 17 March 1957) is the current Menteri Besar of the Malaysian state of Perak, a post equivalent to a Chief Minister and Member of Malaysian Parliament for Bukit Gantang. Nizar is the secretary of the Perak's Branch of the PAS. As Menteri Besar of Perak, he heads the PR coalition in Perak which comprises mainly of members mainly from the Democratic Action Party (DAP), the Parti Keadilaan Rakyat (PKR) and his own party, PAS. Nizar was the first MB from the PR coalition. Appointed by the Crown Prince of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah over two other candidates, Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham and Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi, his appointment was shrouded in controversy, particularly because his party was the smallest party in PR and in the state assembly. The controversy did not last, as very soon all the PR Legislative Members threw their support behind Nizar enabling him to be sworn in on 17 March 2008, his 51st birthday. Nizar is an engineering graduate from Aston University in Birmingham, UK. He took over the chief minister post from Datuk Seri DiRaja Tajol Rosli Mohd Ghazali of Barisan Nasional. Nizar is the son of a Malay-Muslim father and a Chinese mother, who was raised in a Malay-Muslim household from birth.