Khaled: People will decide Umno's fate, not PN

 

Umno's fate will be decided by the people in the upcoming general election, not on its cooperation with Perikatan Nasional (PN), party vice-president Mohamed Khaled Nordin said today.

The former Johor menteri besar urged party supporters to work with the people on the ground instead of wasting time on political polemics at the top level.

This came as many have advised Umno against severing ties with Bersatu and PN, particularly from those within Umno and PAS.

"Lately, there have been too many calls for Umno to reconsider its stance not to cooperate with PN in the 15th general election. Various reasons were given, especially the rhetoric on the unity of ummah, as though Umno had ignored it.

"Umno had never neglected the interests of ummah, not even once. It was Umno that paved way for the unity of the Malays and liberated the country," he said in a statement.

"Umno had accepted the return of Semangat 46 (members) for the sake of Malay unity. Umno was the one which invited PAS to form Muafakat Nasional."

Semangat 46 was a splinter party formed in 1989 by veteran leader Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah after infighting in Umno deepened. It was disbanded in 1996.

"Not joining PN is not neglecting the interests of the Malays. This is because Umno has its own political consideration," explained Khaled.

"Umno is not a party with a herd mentality. It holds the stand that Umno's survival is more important than PN's survival. 

"Umno is a party for the people. This is not a party formed via a political game of an elite group that had betrayed the people's mandate. After listening to the wishes of the grassroots, Umno decided that it will contest under BN's ticket," he added. 

Khaled said the party will give all its attention to the people now.

Umno recently communicated its intention to cut ties with PN and Bersatu come GE15. Bersatu responded by saying it will focus on its relationship with other allies like PAS, Gerakan, and Star. 

PAS, meanwhile, has refused to take sides in the feud between Bersatu and Umno.  - Mkini