Do not read too much into Muhyiddin’s absence at Umno meeting, says minister

Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (right) speaking at the press conference after the Umno meeting today, explaining that DPM Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was unable to attend due to prior commitments. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Nazir Sufari, March 8, 2015.Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin raised eyebrows by his absence in today's much anticipated Umno meeting between party president Datuk Seri Najib Razak and division leaders.

However, an Umno leader brushed off any significance to the former's absence saying "no one should read too much into it".

Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Muhyiddin, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, had prior commitments that he had to attend to.

"In the past, the deputy president also did not attend (such a meeting). In this case, he told me that he wanted to attend but he had other commitments," the Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister told reporters after the meeting.

Muhyiddin's statement on debt-ridden 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) on Friday had sparked talks that there were differences of opinion within the Cabinet over how to deal with the company's suspicious deals.

Muhyiddin had said that efforts to handle 1MDB's debts must not involve a bailout of the government-owned strategic investment firm using public funds.

His statement came two days after Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak stated that the Cabinet had expressed confidence that no wrongdoing had been committed within 1MDB, and that the Auditor-General will vet the company's accounts.

Muhyiddin also said the 1MDB board of directors must explain some of the company's transactions that appear not to be profitable in the long run to the firm or government, in a departure from the Cabinet's statement on Wednesday that cleared 1MDB of any wrongdoing in its business transactions.

"I am of the opinion that the Auditor-General must audit 1MDB's accounts in a transparent, independent and comprehensive manner since the company's inception, as the allegations of dereliction relates to transactions done since 2009 which were not included in the 2013 annual accounts audited by the Deloitte firm," Muhyiddin said in the statement when welcoming the prime minister's directive to the Auditor-General to verify 1MDB's accounts.

The next day, DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said that the DPM had effectively shattered the facade of Umno unity on the 1MDB issue.

At the press conference today, Ismail Sabri about 160 out of 191 divisions had shown up for the meeting and those who could not attend were tied down with other commitments.

"Many Johor Umno divisions have a state level townhall meeting in Muar. Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin said that Umno divisions from the state will support whatever was decided in the meeting.

"Many Sabah divisions were also unable to attend as they have a training programme that had been scheduled earlier. But overall we are satisfied with the attendance today."

- TMI