Malaysian celeb Diva AA drops out of election on dead mother’s advice
And you thought Thai politics and elections were crazy! A celebrity candidate, Diva AA, running for Malaysian parliament has pulled out of the race against his brother because his mother told him to. His dead mother.
Malaysia is holding its 15th general election this year, commonly referred to as GE15. Voting will take place on November 15 across the country. A total of 945 candidates are running in the election, but perhaps the most interesting race is for a parliament seat representing Kuala Lumpur’s Gombak district.
Incumbent Mohamed Azmin Ali from the political alliance Perikatan Nasional is facing an unlikely challenger. His brother, the similarly named Mohamed Azwan Ali, is also known as a television host and actor Diva AA. He describes himself on Twitter as the “No 1 Diva in Malaysia. Multi Talented No 1 Celebrity.”He declared his candidacy to challenge his brother for the Gombak MP seat but had a change of heart.
During the nomination day event, the diva celebrity withdrew his campaign and began sobbing when speaking to the press, Coconuts KL reported. Diva AA said that he dreamt that his late mother had instructed him not to go head-to-head with his brother in the election.
“It’s because of the whispers of my late Mak Tok (mother)… She comes to me in my dream, advising me not to contest [the election].”
While his dead mother may have told him to not challenge his brother, she may not have fully instilled a sense of brotherhood in Diva AA. After his tearful public withdrawal, he didn’t hesitate to support another candidate opposing his brother, PH member Pakatan Harapan.
The PH party saw a major defection a few years ago with many members exiting. As a result, they lost their parliamentary majority in February 2020. Diva AA’s brother Azmin was one of the defectors that led to the party’s downfall.
