Umno division chiefs want action against errant leaders
BY JOCELINE TAN THE STAR
Heated discussion: Faizal (left) and Sharkar said a poll in a Telegram chat group exclusive only to Umno division chiefs showed 154 out of 170 wanted action be taken.
PETALING JAYA: More than 75% of Umno division chiefs want the supreme council to act against party leaders whose statements and actions have damaged the party, according to an internal poll.
Kapar Umno division chief Datuk Faizal Abdullah said the poll did not specify names but he did not deny that the names the division chiefs had in mind were deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, vice-president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal and Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The poll conducted via the Telegram chat group exclusive only to Umno division chiefs showed that 154 of the 170 leaders in the chat group are asking for action against the culprits regardless of their position or status in the party.
“The overwhelming sentiment in the group was that, enough is enough,” said Faizal.
Temerloh division chief Datuk Sharkar Shamsudin, the administrator of the chat group, said the ball was now at the feet of the supreme council to take the appropriate action.
Sharkar, a Pahang state executive councillor, said there was no need to make a formal request to the supreme council because the majority of the supreme council members were also division chiefs.
“They will know what needs to be done when the supreme council meets at the end of the month,” said Sharkar.
Muhyiddin’s position as deputy president and Shafie’s vice-president post may be in jeopardy while Dr Mahathir may find himself out of Umno for the third time in his life if the proposal is taken up by the supreme council.
Faizal added that the survey was done shortly after Muhyiddin’s no-holds barred talk at a political forum in Johor Baru last Saturday.
The former deputy prime minister had also criticised Najib’s handling of the 1MDB issue and said that the party was out to sideline him despite the sacrifices he had made.
“There was heated discussion in our chat room. They were upset that Tan Sri Muhyiddin had called us cowards just because we don’t agree with him and chose to support the president,” said Faizal.
Those in the chat group were then asked to vote on the following motion: The division chiefs of Umno advocate that stern action be taken against those who are like scissors amid the folds (gunting dalam lipatan or internal saboteurs).
Within 48 hours, 76% of those in the chat room had voted in favour of the motion.
The first to do so was Penampang chief Datuk John Ambrose, whose division made waves when it passed a resolution to censure Muhyiddin for failing to uphold the party’s reputation and honour.
“We are tired of the drama. They keep telling us they want to unite the party but their action is something else.
“It is like a marriage gone wrong, quarrelling in front of the children and the neighbours. It is not on for us,” said Faizal.
Many thought that Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor was referring to Dr Mahathir, Muhyiddin and Shafie when he spoke of action against seven Umno members.
It is understood that he was referring to the seven branch heads from Negri Sembilan who had asked Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to resign as president.
The division chiefs’ Telegram chat group has become an influential source of feedback for party leaders.
The group comprises 170 out of the 191 Umno division chiefs.
However, the Umno president and deputy president are not included in the group because members want to be able to discuss freely.
