KUALA LUMPUR: Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is the best candidate for the deputy prime minister post.
Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Mohd Razlan Rafii said this was based on the hierarchy and the party's decision.
"To fill in the post for the unity government leadership and based on the hierarchy, Zahid is the best candidate for the post.
"We leave it to the party and follow the party's hierarchy, so the president is the best (for the post)... All parties must calm down and return to the party's hierarchy and decisions," he said.
Before this, Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan was touted to be the best candidate for the post in the unity government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
Among those who said that Mohamad, also known as Tok Mat, was the best candidate for the post were Negri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun and Umno Youth exco Datuk Muhamad Muqharabbin Moktarrudin.
Meanwhile, Razlan said he was confident that Anwar, who is Pakatan Harapan chairman, would discuss and refer to the leadership of the component parties in the unity government for this purpose.
Asked if the election of Zahid for the post will create a polemic following an ongoing court case, Razlan said, all parties must be fair in their assessment of the matter.
"Although the president has ongoing court cases, the prime minister had said before that the president has not been convicted yet.
"PH will discuss this with the component parties, and the prime minister must be aware that there are some leaders whose cases were 'created' for character assassination," he said.