No Zahid camp, only Camp Umno, says Ahmad Maslan

 

Ahmad Maslan (sixth from left) with members of the Pontian division, where he was elected division chairman. (Facebook pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan has reiterated party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s assurance that there was only one faction, “Camp Umno”, within the party amid talks of internal division.

“The president has said it before and you’ve probably heard this many times, there are no such camps in Umno. Just Camp Umno,” he told a press conference after handing out school aid at a Ramadan event here today.

Ahmad said the talk of division had arisen as the party’s top two positions were not contested at the party elections. He said the decision against a contest had benefited the party.

“This is what we hope for (especially) when Umno is going through a difficult period right now. We cannot be perceived as a divided party,” he said.

It was previously alleged that factions have emerged within Umno; those that are aligned and those against Zahid. However, he, as well as his deputy Mohamad Hasan and former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, have brushed off such claims.

When asked whether this lack of division was due to the recent action taken against senior members, Ahmad said the slew of suspensions and expulsions was simply disciplinary and had nothing to do with their intentions to run in the party elections.

“Everyone knows – how can you talk ill of one’s own party while campaigning during the general election?” he said.

“How can you say that your party is this and that on social media? It got to the point where it was being reported in the media on a daily basis. How can you ‘shoot down’ your own party during those weeks?” he said.

In addition to former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin, Umno also axed former Selangor Umno chief Noh Omar for breaching party discipline during the general election in November and suspended former vice president Hishammuddin Hussein, former information chief Shahril Hamdan, Maulizan Bujang and Salim Sharif for six years.

Ahmad said that not abiding by signed statutory declarations empowering Zahid to form alliances with other parties and coalitions was another disciplinary offence committed by some of the former members. - FMT