Zahid lost the vote and will now have to resign
Zahid would now have no choice but to resign as the Umno President. He took a gamble and lost. He asked the Umno MPs to choose between him and Muhyiddin and they chose Muhyiddin. The only honourable thing left for Zahid to do is to respect the choice of the Umno MPs and leave.
NO HOLDS BARRED
Raja Petra Kamarudin
That is the problem with a vote of confidence or a vote of no confidence. The person calling for that vote takes a huge gamble, because if you lose the vote, it tantamount to a vote against you.
For example, if Anwar Ibrahim calls for a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin in Parliament next month, and the vote gets defeated, that tantamount to a vote of confidence for Muhyiddin and a vote of no confidence for Anwar.
On the other hand, if Muhyiddin calls for a vote of confidence in Parliament next month, and the vote gets defeated, that tantamount to a vote of no confidence against him.
Yesterday, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi called for an internal vote of no confidence against Muhyiddin (meaning a vote of no confidence amongst only the Umno MPs) and he lost. Only about a quarter supported Zahid, while three-quarters did not.
This failed internal vote of no confidence not only translates to a vote of confidence for Muhyiddin, but also a vote of no confidence against Zahid.
It is like Zahid asking the Umno MPs to “choose between Muhyiddin and me, who do you want?” The fact that the Umno MPs chose Muhyiddin means they do not want Zahid. That is the danger of a “choose between him and me” challenge. If they choose “him”, that means they do not want you.
Zahid would now have no choice but to resign as the Umno President. He took a gamble and lost. He asked the Umno MPs to choose between him and Muhyiddin and they chose Muhyiddin. The only honourable thing left for Zahid to do is to respect the choice of the Umno MPs and leave.
Anyway, Zahid may have a bigger problem on his hands (SEE NEWS ITEM BELOW). Umno may have violated the Societies Act and the party could be facing suspension or deregistration if it does not comply to the RoS letter. This may be an even more serious development for Umno than its President losing the vote of confidence.
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Umno polls’ postponement invalid, says RoS
(FMT) – The Registrar of Societies (RoS) says Umno’s decision to postpone its party elections by up to 18 months is invalid.
The Star quoted the RoS as saying the postponement was not legitimate as the term for Supreme Council members elected in 2018 had ended on June 30.
The English daily reported that RoS director-general Jasri Kasim said this decision was based on the meeting minutes from an Umno Supreme Council meeting, which decided that the party polls slated for July 7 would be postponed for 18 months.
He added that the RoS’ responsibility was to ensure that the management and activities of all registered bodies were in adherence with their constitutions, the Societies Act 1966 and other laws.
On June 25, Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan said the party elections would be postponed for up to 18 months, according to its constitution.
He had told FMT that this was due to the current Covid-19 situation after consulting the health ministry and National Security Council, adding that the party had informed the Registrar of Societies.
