Ahmad Maslan defeats Hasni in Pontian
PONTIAN: After 22 years leading Pontian Division UMNO, Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad, lost to his deputy Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan in the competition for the position.
In the one-on-one competition, Ahmad who is also the Secretary General of UMNO won 388 votes while Hasni who is also the former Chairman of Johor UMNO got 291 votes.
A total of 690 delegates from 117 branches were involved in the selection process this time which was held at the Sultan Ibrahim Diamond Jubilee Hall, Pontian.
Hasni has held the position of Pontian Division UMNO Chief since 2001, while Ahmad has held the position of Pontian Division UMNO Deputy Chief since 2008.
The clash between Hasni and Ahmad for the position of UMNO Pontian Division Chief is considered to be one of the fiercest division chief contests in this UMNO election.
Hasni has a great reputation when he led Pontian Division UMNO for 22 years, not to mention he was the Chairman of Johor UMNO from 2018 until last January.
He was also appointed as Johor Menteri Besar for two years in 2020, in addition to being Johor Opposition Leader, two years before.
Most brilliantly when Hasni managed to steer UMNO and Barisan Nasional (BN) Johor to win the Johor State Election (PRN) last year, after recording a comfortable victory with more than a two-thirds majority when he managed to win 40 out of 56 seats.
Ahmad is also an experienced leader, not to mention that he has been a Member of Parliament for Pontian since 2008 and is actively involved in various activities going to the field and meeting the Pontian community.
Ahmad has extensive experience having held various top party positions at the national level including being appointed as UMNO's Head of Information in 2009 as well as Chairman of the BN Publicity and Information Bureau in 2012.
Ahmad also currently holds the position of Deputy Minister including Deputy Minister of Finance I, in addition to having been appointed as Deputy Minister of International Trade and Industry I (2015-2018), Deputy Minister of Finance II (2013-2015) and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (2009- 2013).