PETALING JAYA: Umno will forge closer ties, especially at the grassroots level, with Pakatan Harapan after convincing wins in the recent two by-elections in Johor, says the party.
Umno supreme council member Datuk Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi said that the supreme council meeting on Wednesday night had discussed various issues including the outcome and impact of the Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state seat by-elections.
He added that Umno had expressed the party’s commitment to defending the unity government and its current political cooperation.
“Umno will continue to go down to the grassroots to explain the rationale of the cooperation with DAP and what had transpired in Pulai and Simpang Jeram,” he said when contacted yesterday.
Umno and Barisan Nasional had worked with Pakatan to secure the victories of the latter’s candidates Suhaizan Kaiat and Nazri Abdul Rahman in the Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state by-elections.
Umno supreme council member Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said the party had contributed votes to Pakatan candidates in the two by-elections, producing convincing majorities to compensate for the low voter turnout.
“We had arranged candidate engagements with the Malay grassroots and the interaction convinced them to vote for Pakatan,” he added.
Asked if the supreme council meeting had discussed Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA), Nur Jazlan, who is also Pulai Umno division chief, said that they fully supported the court’s decision.
“The supreme council congratulated Ahmad Zahid on the court decision but wished it was a discharge amounting to an acquittal,” he said.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, was granted a DNAA by the High Court on 47 charges of criminal breach of trust (CBT), corruption, and money laundering in connection with Yayasan Akalbudi funds.
Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah granted the DNAA based on 11 grounds submitted by deputy public prosecutor Datuk Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar, including instructions from the Attorney General’s Chambers to drop the charges and grant a DNAA.
On Wednesday, Umno secretary-general Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said Umno would also implement measures to improve and empower the party based on the post-mortem on the recent six state elections.
“The strengthening of Umno’s cooperation with its allies in Pakatan will also be intensified to ensure the political stability of the country and the well-being of the people,” he said.
Earlier, Umno supreme council member Isham Jalil claimed that he and several other Umno members might be sacked from the party this week, following their criticisms of the leadership’s decision to participate in the elections with Pakatan.
