Tok Mat: Umno's stance on Bersatu cooperation has always been consistent

 

SEREMBAN: Umno has been consistent that it will only work with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia until the next polls, says party deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

He said Umno only agreed to be part of Perikatan to form the Federal government following the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government in February last year.

"Umno only agreed to work with Bersatu under the Perikatan banner following the collapse of the Pakatan government so that a new government could be formed, ” he said

Mohamad Hassan said that Umno's decision to not work with Bersatu in the next general election should not surprise anyone as they were never officially part of Perikatan Nasional, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

"I don't understand why people are saying that Umno and Bersatu are now divorced when we were never 'married' in the first place. We were never in a formal coalition like Barisan, ” said Mohamad Hassan.

"So, I don't understand why some people are surprised when we (Umno) said that we would not be working with Bersatu in the next general election," he added.

He said the decision by the party's supreme council on Feb 19 was merely a formality.

Following the meeting, Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi wrote to Bersatu president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin notifying him of the decision.

Zahid also stated that Umno would continue to support the Perikatan government until Parliament is dissolved.

On Jan 5, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan had said 147 out of 189 Umno divisions had also voted against collaborating with Bersatu.

Mohamad said the people must remember that Umno only agreed to form a government under Perikatan, which was then merely a grand concept.

"We were never officially a part of Perikatan," he said.

Perikatan is now a coalition made up of Bersatu, PAS, Sabah STAR, Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) and Gerakan.

Mohamad said rightfully, the present government should also not be called the Perikatan government as Umno and Barisan are not part of the coalition.

He said Umno would continue to use the Barisan and Muafakat Nasional platforms to continue its political struggles.

"In Sarawak, we will continue working with GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) and GRS (Gabungan Rakyat Sabah) in Sabah," he said. - Star