Zahid: Umno to take drastic action against deserters

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno will take drastic measures against elected representatives who desert the party to become independent MPs or assemblymen, said its president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

This includes sending writ of summons to certain such individuals, and demanding they repay the party back the costs they incurred as well as vacating the seats they won on the Umno ticket in the last general election.

“The seat belongs to Umno, and to the supporters of Barisan Nasional,” he said in his speech to party delegates during the second night of Umno’s annual general meeting.

Although Zahid acknowledged it is very difficult to block someone from leaving Umno, the party will respect the wishes of its members who feel they have been betrayed with such action by having existing representatives of both Umno and BN sign a declaration.

“Anyone who leaves their party, either to stand as independent or join another party, will result in their status as an elected representative being stripped automatically and requiring them to repay the losses they incurred back to their parties,” he said.

Zahid also attributed the loyalty of Umno’s rank-and-file to its leaders rather than the party as being the main thing that contributed to warlord culture.

“This culture is the primary cause of money politics. As president, I am committed to making Umno a zero-corruption party, where money politics can destroy a party and cause its members to elect the wrong leaders who become greedy devourers.

“To that, we will restructure the Discipline Board and grant it more power to function as an independent body. This will enable it to make final decisions when taking actions, and the board will be staffed with legal professionals and investigative experts who can ensure quick and decisive action will be taken,” he said.