[UPDATED] Tok Mat arrives at Umno HQ

KUALA LUMPUR – Menara Dato Onn in PWTC is abuzz with activity, as Umno members and media personnel swarm the building lobby ahead of tonight’s Supreme Council meeting.

Party president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is said to be in discussion with Umno state liaison committee chairmen.

The Supreme Council is expected to decide on its political cooperation with Perikatan Nasional and Umno splinter Bersatu.

Some state Umno chiefs, such as Terengganu’s Datuk Ahmad Said and Melaka’s Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusof, as well as party vice-president Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, left the Umno headquarters at 7pm without talking to the media.

Supreme Council members are trickling in. So far, The Vibes has spotted Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek, Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan and Datuk Shamsul Anuar Nasarah, among others.

It is learnt that Sabah Umno chief Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin is in Kota Kinabalu awaiting the outcome of tonight’s meeting.

Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said and Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin are among the arrivals at the headquarters.

Deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan arrived just after 8.30pm, followed by information chief Shahril Suffian Hamdan.

Melaka Umno’s Rauf returned to PWTC at 8.45pm.

Sources told The Vibes that the meeting has yet to kick off in earnest, as party members are having dinner together.

The matter of Bersatu cooperation was brought up after 143 of the 191 Umno division heads agreed with a proposal to reject the party led by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

“The motion was submitted via a WhatsApp group among divisional chiefs, and I, as the president, have to respect it. So, a motion on it should be studied and discussed with the Supreme Council.

“I hope the decision made will be acceptable to all party members, especially the 38 MPs from Umno and parties in the government,” said Zahid a few days ago.

Umno Youth chief Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki has accused Bersatu of “stealing and buying” Umno members.

He said each Umno member who joined Bersatu would be paid RM100, while an allocation of between RM3,000 and RM5,000 would be given for each branch set up. – The Vibes, January 6, 2021

Additional reporting by G. Surach