Sabotage bound to happen, warn 2 Umno men
Two party leaders say members who are unhappy with the leadership and the current situation are likely to break ranks and either not vote or vote for PN.
(FMT) – Two Umno leaders foresee acts of election sabotage from within despite party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s plea for members to exercise restraint.
Umno’s woes have been well-publicised over the past year with Zahid struggling to maintain his grip on the party following numerous high-profile expulsions and suspensions.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, an Umno leader from Selangor claimed that members were unlikely to vote for the party this time around, citing three reasons.
“There is unhappiness with the Umno leadership and dissatisfaction over candidates, while some members are not keen on working with Pakatan Harapan.
“Hence, Perikatan Nasional (PN) will definitely gain votes,” he said, adding that boycotting the ballot would be the prime mode of protest.
“They are not happy, but they do not want to vote for other parties, so they will not come out to vote.”
He added that previously, the fight had always been internal but now there were also squabbles with Barisan Nasional (BN) partners and Pakatan Harapan (PH).
Meanwhile an Umno division leader from Selangor also said there was much unhappiness at the grassroots level.
“You may see members campaigning for PH or BN candidates now, but on polling day, they will end up voting for the opposition or will not turn up at all.
“They are doing this because Zahid or division leaders aligned to him will ‘mark’ them if they don’t get on the ground and help,” he said, adding that many of the unhappy members loved the party but not the leadership or the party’s direction.
“It feels like a joke whenever the president says to support a PH candidate, especially one from the DAP. Many division leaders don’t even bother advising their members to support DAP candidates because we know it’s a waste of time,” he claimed.
Zahid had earlier reminded party members not to sabotage candidates in the state election.
He told Umno members in Lenggeng, Negeri Sembilan, that he and state Umno chief Jalaluddin Alias had worked hard to negotiate with PH for the Lenggeng seat.
He said Umno members must focus on ensuring support from BN and PH grassroots as well as undecided voters.
Meanwhile, Selangor PN chairman Azmin Ali claimed that more than 30 Umno branch chiefs had met him in Gombak on Aug 1 to discuss giving their full support to PN while remaining in Umno.
He said their decision was not made under duress but more out of “a desire to save the state and the country”.
Voters in Selangor, Kedah, Terengganu, Penang, Kelantan and Negeri Sembilan will go to the polls on Aug 12.
