KUALA LUMPUR – Speculations on Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein purportedly challenging Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for the Umno presidency have intensified, with a former party Supreme Council member claiming to have internal knowledge of the matter.
Datuk Seri Lokman Noor Adam said he has been informed by reliable sources that this was confirmed by Tenggara Umno division chief Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, a known ally to Hishammuddin.
Hishammuddin was one of several Umno MPs who objected to the party’s decision to establish a cooperation with Pakatan Harapan to form the unity government after the general election.
The former Umno vice-president has since fallen out of favour among the party’s top leaders, with observers speculating that he might now vie for the number one post.
In an hour-long video uploaded on his social media, Lokman claimed that Dr Adham had recently instructed branch leaders under his division to vote for Hishammuddin as party president during a recent trip to Surabaya, Indonesia.
He also said that the former health minister had supposedly expressed his intention to defend his division chief’s post.
“During their trip, prior to returning to Malaysia, he (Dr Adham) clearly announced that he will be defending his position,” Lokman said.
“In his speech, he also requested the branch chiefs to vote for Hishammuddin as Umno president. There is already a confession from Hishammuddin’s campaign manager declaring that he will contest for the presidency.”
He said the information was relayed to him by party leaders who took part in the trip to Indonesia but are not aligned to Dr Adham.
“They are prepared to become witnesses if they are called in by the party’s disciplinary committee,” he said, revealing that he will be filing an official complaint to the committee over the involvement of supposed money politics.
Lokman alleged that the Surabaya trip from December 26 to 29, attended by 46 of the 54 branch leaders from the Tenggara division, was sponsored by Dr Adham and Hishammuddin, although he did not provide any evidence to back his claim.
“We can already make our guess. Certainly those contesting the division chief’s post and the party presidency are most likely to have been the sponsors. So, our job is to lodge a disciplinary report.”
The Vibes has reached out to Hishammuddin and Dr Adham for response to the allegations.
Meanwhile, Lokman said he has also heard speculations that Khairy Jamaluddin, who was recently defeated in the 15th general election, will be contesting the Umno deputy presidency as part of Hishammuddin’s camp.
Lokman said Khairy’s decision to officially join the Sg Buloh Umno division as a member, a month after he lost in the constituency to PKR’s Datuk R. Ramanan, lends further credence to his claim.
He pointed out that both the Sg Buloh division chief Datuk Megat Firdouz Megat Junid and his deputy Datuk Harison Hassan are among Hishammuddin’s strongest supporters.
“Obviously, Hishammuddin won’t make it obvious that Khairy is his partner, and Khairy will also want to play it safe, and not picture himself as someone who would endorse anyone as president.
“But Umno members are not stupid. I think these two figures will contest as president and deputy president.”
Umno is due to hold its internal election by May this year, with the party constitution stipulating that the polls shall be held within six months after a general election. – The Vibes, January 2, 2023
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