PH should apologise to Umno for decades of attacks, says Nur Jazlan

 

Nur Jazlan Mohamed attributed the victory of Umno’s Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah in Mahkota to increasing Malay trust and confidence in Umno’s cause. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: 

Pakatan Harapan should publicly apologise to Umno for decades of attacks on its former adversary turned government partner, says Umno Supreme Council member Nur Jazlan Mohamed.

He said the Mahkota by-election on Saturday had shown that no single party in the unity government coalition could claim to be the main pillar of the alliance.

PH must realise this and perhaps even apologise to Umno for the slander, accusations and negative perceptions they’ve created over the years, which have tarnished Umno’s image among voters,

 Nur Jazlan said in an analysis of the by-election.

He said the by-election victory was a result of increasing Malay trust and confidence in Umno’s cause. 

Malay voters aren’t ignorant. They can see the hypocrisy if PH continues to ignore Umno’s contributions to the unity government. Today, like it or not, PH really needs Umno,

 Nur Jazlan said.

Without the Malay votes that Umno brings, PH can forget about staying in power. So, if PH truly wants the unity government to survive until the next general election, now is the time to change their approach,

 he said.

Because today, it seems that PH very much needs Umno’s support to remain in government,

 he said.

For more than two decades, PH partners PKR, DAP and Amanah have been adversaries of Barisan Nasional partners Umno, MCA and MIC. The two sides came together after the 2022 general election to form a coalition federal government together with East Malaysian parties.

With 81 seats in the Dewan Rakyat, PH holds the largest share of the 153 seats controlled by the unity coalition, followed by BN (30 seats), GPS (23), GRS (6), and independent members and minor parties (13).

Nur Jazlan said a public apology to Umno by PH would not only mend the relationship between the two parties, but also show the public that politics had changed, he said.

Politics are no longer about division but about unity for the sake of national stability. If PH wants to ensure Umno’s continued support, they must correct the perception they’ve built over the years,

 said Nur Jazlan.

In the Mahkota by-election, Barisan Nasional fielded an Umno candidate, Syed Hussien Syed Abdullah, who was elected with a majority of 20,648 votes over his rival, Haizan Jaafar from Perikatan Nasional.

Nur Jazlan thanked Kluang MP Wong Shu Qi of DAP and former Johor executive councillor Jimmy Low of MCA for their roles in drawing in Chinese voters in Kluang to support the Umno candidate.

He said the Mahkota by-election 

fully translated the meaning of the unity government

, with component parties of PH and BN working hand-in-hand with their coalition partners 

to attract voters with their respective expertise

. - FMT