Hidden agenda behind call for early Umno polls

FMT:

Hidden agenda behind call for early Umno polls, says Tajuddin

PETALING JAYA: Umno Supreme Council member Tajuddin Abdul Rahman claims there is a hidden agenda in the call by some members for the Umno presidential election to be held early.

Naming only Khairy Jamaluddin in an interview with FMT, he said those making the call were the same members who “went missing” after the party lost in GE14.

He took a swipe at Khairy, the science, technology and innovation minister, saying: “KJ wants elections, but where was he when we lost?”

Khairy recently said the Umno polls, which are supposed to be held this year, must be expedited to resolve the party’s internal problems before the next general election.

Tajuddin said those who seemed “to be in a hurry for party elections” were missing not only after the 2018 general election but also when Umno made its Muafakat Nasional pact with PAS.

“Now that things are looking better for Umno, they want to become champions. Where is the sincerity?

“What is the hidden agenda? Who wants to be president and deputy president?”

Tajuddin said the Umno leadership would not accept any move to take control of the party.

He claimed Umno was gaining strength and hoping to unite its members but was being frustrated by rogue members “coming up with various strategies” aimed at the party’s destruction.

Last Tuesday, former prime minister Najib Razak said having the Umno elections early might divide and weaken the party further because rival parties might entice the losers to join them.

Tajuddin said Barisan Nasional was confident of winning in the next general election, claiming that voters were now aware it was better at delivering on promises than either Pakatan Harapan or Perikatan Nasional.

He said BN’s loss in GE14 had turned out to be a blessing for the coalition, enabling voters to compare its rule to the way its rivals had run the country.

“Now they trust us,” he said.