Zahid: GE15 best time to 'punish' party hoppers

Zahid: GE15 best time to 'punish' party hoppers


Fresh from being acquitted of 40 graft charges yesterday, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the 15th general election (GE15) is the best time to “punish” party hoppers.

According to him, detractors of Umno are trying to sow discord inside the party, as they fear Umno’s uprising.

“They know that their worst nightmare will begin when the Parliament is dissolved. The party hoppers will be ‘punished’ by their voters.

“There are also those who fear losing and being rejected by the people due to their poor performance at their respective constituencies,” he said in a statement on Facebook today.

Yesterday, the Bagan Datuk MP was acquitted on 40 counts of graft related to the Foreign Visa System (VLN).

In doing so, Shah Alam High Court Judge Mohd Yazid Mustafa ruled that the prosecution failed to prove a prima facie case and its three key witnesses were unreliable.

Attorney General Idrus Harun said the prosecution will examine the judgment in Zahid’s acquittal before deciding on an appeal.

For the record, Zahid (above) is still facing a separate trial for criminal breach of trust, corruption, and money laundering involving Yayasan Akalbudi. That trial is in the defence stage.

‘The enemy within’

According to Zahid, Umno has been further strengthened to face GE15.

“Let us all rise up again, unite, and march on forward,” he said.

At the same time, he also claimed that he was subjected to ridicule and negative labels, including attempts to topple him from the Umno presidency, when he was undergoing trial.

Without mentioning names, he said this was done by parties who knew they can use the party to their whims and fancies without him at the helm.

“The experience got me to self-reflect, strengthened me, and identify the enemies within and outside the party.

“I can forget, but I can never forgive.”

Zahid also reiterated claims that his court case was politically motivated after he refused to heed calls by Dr Mahathir Mohamad to dissolve Umno when the latter was prime minister under Pakatan Harapan rule.