Umno will win GE, but Ismail’s position under threat, says Dr M

 

Dr Mahathir Mohamad says Umno had a good chance of winning because they had ‘a lot of money’.

PETALING JAYA: Dr Mahathir Mohamad is convinced that Umno will win at the 15th general election (GE15), but also predicts internal strife ahead for the party.

He said this was because the party did not want Ismail Sabri Yaakob to remain at the helm of the country, he told Nikkei.

“There will be (infighting) because I’m sure they don’t want the current prime minister to continue,” he was quoted as saying.

Ismail, who is an Umno vice-president, has been at odds with party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi over the need to dissolve Parliament and call for nationwide polls, with the latter pushing for it to be held this year.

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Mahathir went on to suggest that Ismail might not be reappointed as prime minister and argued that another candidate, apart from Zahid, was in the running, namely Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan.

“He is the least involved with crimes,” the former prime minister said.

Mahathir also said Umno had a good chance of winning because they had “a lot of money”.

This is not the first time he suggested that Umno would win. In August, he said his former party would “win big” if GE15 is held this year.

Meanwhile, the Langkawi MP told the Associated Press that most Malay voters have returned to support Umno.

He claimed that it was mainly because these voters had been offered money and other incentives. - FMT