KUALA LUMPUR – While an air of anxiety hangs over Umno leaders aligned with Bersatu, the majority of its members – from the grassroots and party wings to the Supreme Council – are in support of president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
A key takeaway of the 75th Umno General Assembly 2020 over the last two days is that the annual event has succeeded in closing ranks, with the exception of a few Cabinet members and those aligned with the Perikatan Nasional government.
The new-found cohesion in the fractious Barisan Nasional is cemented at the expense of Bersatu, with which Umno has passed a resolution to fully sever ties in the 15th general election.
The animosity of the largest Malay-based party towards its rival is now deeper than ever before, with almost every delegate reiterating calls to end ties with Bersatu once and for all.
In the same spirit, and leading the clarion call, is Zahid, who said Umno’s decision to end its political cooperation with Bersatu, which brought it back into the government, is final.
The firebrand one-liners Zahid made on the Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin-led party and Umno turncoats during his policy speech this morning are met with rapturous applause and cheers from the hundreds of delegates present at Dewan Merdeka at the World Trade Centre here.
Like Zahid, other key delegates and liaison committee chairmen also won praises whenever they alluded to the “divorce” from Bersatu.
So, it is no surprise when Bersatu leaders or representatives are nowhere to be seen on the second day of the gathering – an absence made more pronounced when Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan introduced present non-Umno leaders individually.
The allies include BN’s top brass from MCA, MIC, its Muafakat Nasional partner PAS, and Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah – despite it not being part of the BN or MN fold.
While Zahid’s speech feeds the appetite of delegates, his words on Bersatu leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang.
Hadi keeps mum as he left the hall, while PAS’ volunteer corps Unit Amal pushed and shoved reporters aside to prevent them from quizzing the leader about his thoughts on the Umno president’s speech.
Much of the spotlight is also shed on Ketereh MP and Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa, who said it is up to the Umno president to set the narrative of the party’s direction.
But his fate with the party lies in the balance after Zahid said Umno’s disciplinary board will decide if punitive action will be taken against one of its MPs – a dig many believe to be directed at Annuar.
He may face similar disciplinary action as his press secretary, Datuk Tun Faisal Ismail Aziz, who has been suspended from the party for six years for criticising the president.
Umno stalwart Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, known as Ku Li, also echoes much of the party’s sentiment, calling those with ministerial posts to immediately relinquish their positions if they want to toe the line.
In his winding-up speech, Zahid, who is embroiled in multiple graft charges, said these are turbulent times for the party, acknowledging the ever-changing dynamics of the nation’s politics.
Yet, this is not the first time that Umno has experienced internal strife, and it certainly won’t be the last.
In the past, the nation had seen how the once majestic party split when Ku Li left the fold to form Semangat 46 in the late 80s, and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim formed PKR a decade later.
Evidently, the current crisis between Umno and its latest and strongest splinter party, Bersatu, has come to a head.
But if history repeats itself, Umno will ride out this predicament as it always has. And if the tone of this assembly is to be of any indication, it is that the party should not be written off from the future of the nation’s politics.
Although emboldened with a new mandate, Zahid did concede that Umno may have to form new partnerships with other parties moving forward.
This may include forming a unity government – a possibility which he laid out to Umno members.
However, he stopped short of saying that this may involve unlikely bedfellows, such as PKR, indicating that the anti-Anwar and DAP rhetoric could merely be a pre-election window dressing.
Indeed, the next few months of political developments will be interesting to watch. – The Vibes, March 28, 2021
Additional reporting by Amar Shah Mohsen
