[ad_1]
KUALA LUMPUR – Umno, the largest party in Malaysia’s ruling Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, has called for general elections to be held once the rise in coronavirus cases has subsided, following lengthy deliberation by top leaders in game on Thursday (October 29). .
“Umno has decided that the mandate of the people to form a stable government should be returned by holding elections once the Covid-19 pandemic is under control,” Umno President Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said after the meeting of three hours of the Supreme Council that started after 8pm.
This was the second such meeting for Umno’s top decision-making council this week.
The council consists of the president and top officials of Umno, as well as the heads of state parties.
There was previous speculation that the party would decide on Thursday night on a candidate to be appointed deputy prime minister in Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s cabinet.
This was to be part of the “new demands” that Umno wanted if he continued to cooperate with the PN government for eight months.
Party sources had told the media anonymously that three names: Umno Vice President and Defense Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and Umno Vice President Mohamad Hasan, were allegedly in the race as Umno’s choice for deputy prime minister.
But the statement distributed to the media at the end of the meeting did not mention the creation of a deputy prime minister post or whether the issue was discussed by the supreme council.
Tan Sri Muhyiddin’s cabinet has four senior ministers, but no deputy prime minister.
Instead, Zahid in the statement called on Umno’s cabinet members to “stay in government” and continue to “take care of the well-being of the people and uphold the dignity of the party.”
He said the party is committed to a “political truce” and a “national reconciliation” amid an increase in coronavirus cases in Malaysia.
On Monday, at another meeting of the Supreme Council, the party deliberated on whether to continue backing Muhyiddin as prime minister. He decided to remain in the 13-party PN coalition in its current form.
Umno leaders have constantly mentioned the party’s need for more strategic positions in the current government and have threatened to withdraw support for Muhyiddin if these demands are not met.
Muhyiddin’s PN has 113 seats in the 222-seat parliament, a narrow two-seat majority.
Uncertainty over the prime minister’s majority prompted Muhyiddin to seek emergency powers from the Malaysian King, Sultan Abdullah Ahmad Shah, last week to pass a crucial federal budget. But the request was rejected by the palace on Sunday.
The statement indicated that Umno, with 39 deputies, will support the 2021 Budget that will be presented in Parliament next Friday (November 6).
[ad_2]
