Umno keeping doors open on position in PN

Umno president Zahid Hamidi said his party's position in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) is an arrangement where its MPs provide support for the current coalition government but it is open to taking it to the next level in the future.

"Umno and the supreme council's decision is to support PN through Umno MPs.

"However, we have never closed the door on future negotiations on our position in PN.

"We also do not prevent any political parties from becoming a component of PN," Zahid (above) said in an interview last night in conjunction with Umno's 74th anniversary.

Last Thursday, Malaysiakini reported that the Umno supreme council had rejected a proposal for Umno to formally join PN as a registered component party.

"There are a number of issues we need to resolve," he said.

Umno deputy president Mohamad Hassan previously said PN was nothing more than an arrangement to form the new government until the next general election.

He said Umno political allies that it will face the next general election with are BN and PAS.

Zahid, in the interview, said while Umno's alliance with PAS under Muafakat Nasional is not formally registered, but the spirit of cooperation is strong.

"This is the new political reality in the country. We vow to strengthen Muafakat Nasional," he said.

Zahid said Umno initially wanted a dissolution of Parliament when the Pakatan Harapan government collapsed but is now supporting the PN government to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Harapan government collapsed in late February after Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin took his party out of the coalition and joined forces with a group of PKR defectors led by former PKR deputy president Azmin Ali.

Together with Umno, PAS, GPS and other minor parties, they formed the new PN federal government.

Zahid attributed the fall of Harapan to the prayers of those who were suffering from Harapan's "oppressive" policies coming true. - Mkini