KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 — Former Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said he was weighing a new political platform from which to continue his criticism of the government, but declined to state if this will be another political party.

In a press conference today, after his and Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir’s sacking from Umno, he said only that the platform should be one that is able to highlight the country’s problems under the current administration.

"The new political platform will give people a choice, so that our country’s future is always safeguarded.

"To make sure we have a sustainable platform, this is something we have to see,” he told reporters when asked if he will join a rival party now that he was no longer with Umno.

On Friday, Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced that the party’s supreme council unanimously agreed to expel Muhyiddin and Mukhriz for their alleged involvement with the opposition, a breach of party rules.

Former vice-president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal was also suspended.

Muhyiddin and Mukhriz are both part of a campaign spearheaded by the latter’s father and former prime minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, to demand Najib resign as prime minister.

Muhyiddin today said that he was not surprised with his sacking, adding that the important point was not their expulsions but the problems facing the country.