SHAH ALAM – Representatives from Umno have met with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) today to provide its statement and defence over a recent motion passed at the party’s general assembly not to contest the top two positions in its upcoming election.
Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said he led a delegation of four to a meeting with RoS director-general Mohd Nawardi Saad and five others to respond to questions pertaining to the matter.
The meeting, he said, took place at RoS headquarters in Putrajaya around 11.30am today.
Speaking to a press conference after an event, Ahmad said Umno had maintained that the motion tabled and passed at its general assembly earlier this month was lawful and based on the party’s constitution.
“We brought documents prepared by our lawyers to provide our explanation and respond to the questions posed by RoS,” he said after attending a Budget 2023 dialogue, here, today.
“I mentioned that no violation of Umno’s meeting procedures or constitution was committed when the vast majority of delegates at our assembly voted in agreement to the motion not to contest the president and deputy president’s posts.
“RoS did have counter-questions, and I have responded meticulously. All my answers are based on Umno’s constitution and regulations. There was no infringement. That was our response to RoS.
Ahmad said RoS had also sought additional documents to be provided, including the minutes of the meeting of Umno’s general assembly and a recent amendment made to its constitution, which will be submitted on Thursday.
He also urged RoS to provide a decision on its investigation into the matter soon, considering Umno’s internal elections scheduled just around the corner.
The party is set to hold its election at the branch level from tomorrow until February 26, followed by an election for the party’s wings’ committee and exco on March 11, while the divisional and Supreme Council elections will be held on March 18.
Previously on January 27, Nawardi had said that RoS will hold a meeting with representatives from Umno pertaining to the motion of no-contest by this week.
This follows complaints lodged by two Umno members to the RoS challenging the motion, which they claimed to have breached the party constitution and meeting procedures.
The motion was passed with a nearly unanimous vote but has since courted criticism from various quarters accusing the party of killing democracy.
The current Umno president is Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, while his deputy is Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan. – The Vibes, January 31, 2023
