UMNO to remain in Anwar’s government until GE, says party president Zahid

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia’s United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) will remain part of the unity government led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim until the next general election, said party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on Tuesday (Jan 6). 

This comes amid calls by UMNO Youth chief Akmal Saleh for the party to withdraw its support for Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led government and align itself with the opposition bloc.

The matter was discussed during UMNO’s political bureau meeting on Monday, reported local news outlet the New Straits Times (NST). 

“I have held this position from the start and the party has also maintained from the beginning that we will never break ranks with the current government … and we will continue to be part of the unity government until the end of the term,” Zahid was quoted as saying by NST on Tuesday. 

Zahid, who is also Malaysia’s deputy prime minister, added that UMNO does not want to repeat past mistakes by forming alliances with opposition parties at this juncture. 

The current term of Malaysia's government is expected to end by late 2027. The next general election must be held by February 2028.

On Saturday, UMNO youth leader Akmal held a special convention calling on the party to withdraw from the unity government and team up with the opposition’s Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS), claiming that UMNO’s current role in the government has forced it to compromise on what he described as “red lines” involving race, religion and royalty.

The convention on Saturday was to discuss whether the party should continue cooperating with the PH coalition led by Anwar, with local media reporting that the meeting was prompted by the refusal of a member of parliament from the Democratic Action Party (DAP), which is part of PH, to apologise for a social media post she had put up. 

Puchong MP Yeo Bee Yin had drawn the ire of UMNO leaders following her Facebook post seen as celebrating a decision by the Kuala Lumpur High Court which rejected former premier Najib Razak’s bid to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest. Najib was UMNO’s immediate past president. 

Yeo’s remark prompted UMNO secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki to question if the party should review its cooperation with those who did not appreciate the party’s contributions.

At the convention on Saturday attended by some 1,500 party members, Akmal also said that the Malays were angered by several recent incidents, including socks bearing the word ‘Allah’, cases of upside-down national flags, and alcohol being served at a government event, local news platform Free Malaysia Today reported. 

He argued that it was time for Malays to unite, beginning with UMNO and PAS – the two biggest Malay parties – coming together. He added that UMNO Youth intends to become the bridge between UMNO and PAS in a bid to revive Muafakat Nasional, an electoral pact between the two parties in 2019.

However, Zahid on Tuesday said such a suggestion had been examined and rejected.

“There were discussions about reviving cooperation between UMNO-BN and the opposition, especially between UMNO and PAS, including suggestions that we look for a suitable time to leave the current government,” he said, as quoted by Buletin TV3 on Tuesday. 

Muafakat Nasional fell apart when PAS and Bersatu - a splinter party of UMNO - formed Perikatan Nasional, which is now the federal opposition bloc. 

Zahid said calls for cooperation with PAS through Muafakat Nasional, which resurfaced following the political crisis in Perlis at the end of last year, must be carefully considered.

Without naming any party, he said UMNO will not allow itself to be betrayed by the same party again.

"Details are important because we do not want to be 'bitten by the same snake' a second time in the same place," he said. 

“We want to move beyond nostalgia, that’s why it’s important to consider any move carefully. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me,” he was quoted as saying on Tuesday by Free Malaysia Today.