Newly sacked Annuar urges Umno members not to quit party

KUALA LUMPUR – Sacked Umno veteran Tan Sri Annuar Musa has urged unhappy party members not to quit the party.

The former Ketereh Umno division chief appealed to members not to be sad, saying that his removal was part and parcel of the struggle to speak the truth.

“My appeal is, for now, don’t leave the party. Be patient,” he said in a Facebook post.

Annuar also met with the Ketereh division which he had led for 35 years, and posted a video of his speech to division members.

He said that his sacking from Umno was a warning to those who were vocal in the party.

However, he also said he was prepared to be sacked if removing him was better for Umno.

“Umno fired me so that others would be afraid (to speak up). If sacking me means others are not affected, then I accept,” he said in his speech to some 300 division members.

The former Ketereh MP, who was not fielded by Barisan Nasional (BN) in the recent 15th general election (GE15), also examined why Umno supporters had voted for Perikatan Nasional (PN).

He said many did not like the way Umno prioritised individuals instead of the party as a whole.

In the end, unhappy Umno supporters who did not want to vote for Pakatan Harapan (PH) chose PN as it was the only alternative, he added.

Annuar also said he would now work on strengthening Muafakat Nasional (MN), which is a registered entity, and turn it into a charitable body.

MN was the name of the informal pact Umno and PAS had after the 2018 general election, but the working relationship fizzled out when PAS opted to join the PN coalition and support Bersatu, which Umno had rejected.

Annuar’s sacking from Umno was decided by the party Supreme Council two nights ago.

Two others reportedly sacked were Arau Wanita Umno division chief Datuk Seri Shamsiah Yasin and her Maran counterpart Datin Seri Fatimah Kassim. This is after the duo supported the candidates of an opposing party in GE15. 

Annuar had been a consistent proponent of BN-PN cooperation, besides criticising the Umno leadership for rejecting Bersatu.

His open criticism saw him removed as BN secretary-general in January last year. 

Following GE15 and after BN’s decision to form a unity government led by PH, Annuar launched an assault on BN chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. 

Among other things, Annuar had said that BN’s poor performance in the election was proof that the rakyat have rejected Zahid, and urged the latter to resign from his presidency.

He also said Zahid had gone against Umno’s earlier decision not to work with PH and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. – The Vibes, December 10, 2022