KUALA LUMPUR – Bersatu was not made part of the Muafakat Nasional alliance as the party had betrayed Umno during the Sabah elections, said Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
The former prime minister said although Bersatu had signed an agreement to join MN in August 2020, its coalition Perikatan Nasional had fielded candidates in 17 seats during the polls in Sabah less than three weeks after inking the deal.
Najib, who is also Barisan Nasional adviser, said this in response to “propaganda” by several quarters that claimed Umno was “dishonest” in its political cooperation with other parties.
He claimed PN had also placed six independent candidates in seats contested by BN in order to split votes.
However, he said, BN had managed to win 14 seats in the election, opposed to the 11 won by Bersatu.
Najib also pointed out that many of the Bersatu politicians involved were former Umno leaders who defected after the 14th general election.
“That is why Umno felt betrayed,” Najib said in a Facebook post today.
“Umno was forced to let go of many seats that traditionally belonged to BN and which had the highest chances of winning for Bersatu as part of negotiations, allowing for (Bersatu to take) the chief minister post if our alliance won.”
Yesterday, Bersatu and PAS cautioned that their support for the Umno-led federal government is conditional, and called for their backing to be respected and even further negotiated.
The two PN parties expressed disappointment over political playmaking by certain quarters, following a meeting between them at Glenmarie Hotel here today.
Bersatu president and former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin warned that these undue political manoeuvres hampered unity and risked the nation’s prosperity. Also present was PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang.
Muhyiddin stopped short of naming the parties in question.
He stressed that the two parties’ support for the federal administration is conditional, and ought to be given due respect and negotiated based on the values of integrity, anti-corruption, and welfare.
Despite earlier agreements, Najib said PN had still gone ahead and fought BN candidates in the 17 seats and placed independent candidates in six other seats in Sabah.
Najib also said the chief minister post went to PN, although BN won more seats.
“So are you still going to use the propaganda that Umno had broken its promises and betrayed MN and PAS because it did not proceed to invite Bersatu after realising that we had been betrayed by a dishonest group?” Najib asked.
“Why should we cooperate and be friends with those who have hidden intentions to end Umno forever through various means including bribing our members and betraying us?”
Najib added that the Umno grassroots members were aware of the betrayal and had resoundingly decided in the Umno general assembly last year to reject any cooperation with Bersatu and PN. – The Vibes, January 30, 2022
