Umno to seek guidance from ROS on holding party polls this year

 

Umno will seek guidance from the Registrar of Societies (ROS) on holding its party polls this year amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan (above) said this was the conclusion made at the Umno supreme council meeting today.

The meeting was highly anticipated as some Umno supreme council leaders had indicated before the gathering that they wanted to push back against plans to postpone the Umno election.

A postponement will see Ahmad Zahid Hamidi staying on as president beyond his three-year term. The Umno constitution allows a postponement of up to 18 months.

Zahid even removed Arau MP Shahidan Kassim as the Perlis Umno chief a day before the gathering today, thus depriving him of a seat at the Umno supreme council meeting.

Shahidan was among Zahid's fierce critics. 

Ahmad, who is also the Pontian MP, said Umno will write to the ROS for advice and guidelines to hold the party elections this year in line with the Umno constitution and standard operating procedures (SOPs) against Covid-19.

"This is to ensure that the election process involving 66,287 delegates meetings and 3.3 million members from Umno branches as well as women, youth and puteri wings can be held effectively and smoothly, considering the rising Covid-19 cases," he said in a statement.

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi

The decision to "seek guidance" on holding party polls this year suggests that Zahid's faction is under pressure from factions opposed to him.

Pekan MP Najib Abdul Razak, who is aligned with Zahid, had warned that elections this year could split the party. 

For those opposed to Zahid, the party election is seen as the last chance to oust Zahid and steer Umno away from confrontation with Bersatu and Perikatan Nasional (PN).

Zahid's opponents are upset at the direction in which he has set Umno on.

He plans to cut ties with Bersatu and PN in the next general election, setting the table for a clash between BN and PN, on top of opposition parties.

Apart from Shahidan, notably absent from the supreme council meeting at the Umno headquarters in Kuala Lumpur was also party deputy president Mohamad Hasan.

However, supreme council leader Tajuddin Abdul Rahman dismissed suggestions that it had anything to do with the relationship between Mohamad and Zahid.

"Tok Mat (Mohamad) is ill and had a minor operation. The president conveyed his regards to him last night. Don't speculate," he said. - Mkini