DAP will work with Umno but not if led by Zahid or Najib

(The New Sarawak) – DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng said the party will not work with Umno as long as it remains under the leadership of current president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and his predecessor, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

While acknowledging that this was a question that has arisen recently, he maintained that this was the party’s stand.

“I want to state here that DAP will not work with Umno under the leadership of Zahid and also under the leadership of Najib. If we’re fighting against Umno or Perikatan Nasional in Sabah, how can we work with an Umno under Zahid or under Najib? This is important,” he said today at a campaign event for the Sabah state elections.

His comment comes in the wake of a claim by PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Wednesay that he had the support of a strong and formidable majority of MPs, mostly Malay-Muslim elected representatives, to form a new government.

Ahmad Zahid had then said he had been informed that many Umno MPs were in support of Anwar, who is opposition leader.

Following Anwar’s announcement, Lim had said the party’s MPs will back Anwar as prime minister as long as he had the numbers to form the government.

However, several Umno and BN leaders have been quick to dispel talk of defections to Anwar’s side.

Yesterday, Warisan deputy president Datuk Darell Leiking said in a speech that the party will never join forces with Umno.

Without DAP’s backing, Anwar would lose the support of 42 MPs. The PKR president had said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s faction of MPs were not among the MPs supporting him.