Keeping Umno afloat
Party leaders say Mohamad is just standing in while president is on leave
Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has only stepped aside, not resigned, as Umno president. His deputy Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan has taken over the reins but he can’t be called upon to be the opposition leader – he’s not a Member of Parliament. It’s now up to the Supreme Council to come up with the right answers to keep Umno afloat.
PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is still the Umno president despite having delegated his duties to his deputy, and he will remain as the parliamentary opposition leader.
Party officials say he is still Umno’s number one and that he is merely on leave from carrying out his duties as president.
Ahmad Zahid on Tuesday said he would step aside but made no mention as to how long Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan would carry out his duties.
The question now is how long the Umno number two will be in charge of the party, as Ahmad Zahid has not resigned.
“The matter will be among the main topics at a party supreme council meeting that will be held tomorrow (Friday),” said Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.
“We will discuss Datuk Seri Zahid’s decision to go on leave, and what the focus should be for Umno following the decision,” Asyraf Wajdi told The Star when met after attending the party management committee meeting at the Umno headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.
Ahmad Zahid was elected Umno president at the party election in June. But an exodus of Umno elected representatives and party members after the May 9 general election has cast doubt on his leadership.
Party secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa and information
chief Datuk Shamsul Anuar Nasarah confirmed that Ahmad Zahid was still the president.
“He did not resign his position as party president.
“He is on leave, which means he no longer makes decisions or gets involved in the decision-making process of the party leadership,” said Asyraf Wajdi, adding Ahmad Zahid did not specify how long he would be on leave.
Barisan Nasional whip Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Ahmad Zahid would remain as opposition
leader in the Dewan Rakyat.
“No change at this point as it’s still too early to decide, with the Dewan Rakyat only meeting again in March next year.
“The position of opposition leader is also something that needs to be discussed with other opposition parties and not just among Barisan,” said Ismail Sabri, who is an Umno vice-president.
Among the opposition, Barisan presently has the most number of seats at 39 with Umno holding 37, followed by one each by MCA and MIC.
The other major opposition party in the Dewan Rakyat is PAS, which has 18 seats in the 222-seat House.
Ismail Sabri said Ahmad Zahid’s decision to step aside was unexpected.
“My take on this situation is that he knew it would be a hassle to hold an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to vote against him.
“That’s why he made this sacrifice to step aside and let the deputy president run the show,” said Ismail Sabri.
Article 9.12 of the Umno constitution states that members of the supreme council, which includes the president, can be sacked with the support of two-thirds of delegates at an EGM.
Umno sources said calls for Ahmad Zahid to go grew louder following the spate of recent resignations from the party.
Six Umno MPs – Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin (Larut), Datuk Rosol Wahid (Hulu Terengganu), Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad (Mersing), Datuk Shabudin Yahaya (Tasik Gelugor), Datuk Mohamad Fasiah Mohd Fakeh (Sabak Bernam) and Datuk Seri Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz (Tanah Merah) – announced their resignation last Friday.
A few days earlier, Sabah Umno lost nine of its 10 assemblymen, five of its six MPs and 22 of its 25 division chiefs.
“We could no longer avoid talking about the issue. People were leaving Umno.
“Whether you like it or not, the president is one of the reasons why this is happening,” said a division chief.
It is understood that one of Umno’s three vice-presidents had sent a letter to Ahmad Zahid on Monday listing reasons why the president should resign.
Sources said that while the letter was not strongly-worded, the message that the leader wanted to convey to Ahmad Zahid was crystal clear.