KUALA LUMPUR – Former Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin paid Umno delegates hundreds of ringgit to sabotage a motion to keep the party’s top two positions uncontested, alleged Sg Besar Umno division leader Datuk Seri Jamal Yunos.
Claiming that he has spoken to the delegates who jeered at the motion yesterday, Jamal said that they confessed to receiving RM300 from Khairy to cause a ruckus in the hall when it was tabled.
“If there was no monetary incentive, the situation in the gallery yesterday would not have been as such. I am sure that the mixed reactions we saw were a result of Khairy’s doing.
“I went up to some of those who expressed their disagreement to the motion, and they told me that they had no choice (but to do so) since they had already been paid,” he said during a press conference at the 2022 Umno general assembly here today.
He added that he is considering lodging a police report on the matter and taking it up with the Umno disciplinary council.
The introduction of the motion by Negri Sembilan delegate Mohd Shukri Samsudin yesterday was greeted by jeers from certain segments of the gallery while cheers from some delegates could also be heard.
The motion, along with six others, will be voted on at the end of the general assembly today.
Jamal also took Khairy to task over his claims that the voting session will be rigged by importing delegates into the hall to vote in favour of the motion, which if passed will see Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and his deputy Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan retaining their positions uncontested.
“He (Khairy) has hidden intentions to spoil Umno’s good name. His accusations are an embarrassment to the party and have exposed our ‘aib’ (indiscretions),” Jamal said.
“I will be filing an official complaint on his behaviour to the party’s disciplinary council…I hope that his party membership will be suspended because of the way he has acted.”
Earlier today, Khairy took to Twitter to claim that clandestine manoeuvres have been implemented to prevent Zahid and Mohamad from facing challengers for their titles.
In the four-minute-long video, Khairy said that he believes the voting session on the additional motion for the top leadership posts to remain status quo will be “bulldozed”.
He also asserted that name tags have been removed from delegates’ seats in the hall where the voting will take place, ostensibly to facilitate the entry of “imported delegates” into the hall and vote in support of the motion.
In response, Jamal said that division chiefs are sure to recognise delegates under their supervision and would not allow unknown faces to enter the hall while voting is taking place. – The Vibes, January 14, 2023