KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 — Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak today announced that the party has decided to sack its former Gopeng division Wanita chief Datuk Hamidah Osman for breaking party rules.
Najib made the announcement in a brief press conference held at the Parliament building after a two-hour meeting with Umno supreme council members.
“Among the decisions we made on discipline, we have decided to sack Datuk Hamidah Osman from her position as Umno member for breaching party discipline,” he said.
“We discussed the others but no decision was made.”
The Umno president did not provide further detail on the party’s reason for sacking Hamidah.
Hamidah has for several months been openly critical of Najib’s leadership, and was even reported as calling for the prime minister to step down ahead of his term, saying she hoped the prime minister and Umno president could see how the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) controversy has affected public trust in Umno.
It was previously speculated that Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and vice-president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal would be among those facing disciplinary action from the party today for criticising the party leadership.
According to their aides, the two leaders were unable to attend today’s meeting because they are currently abroad.
In October, Umno secretary-general Datuk Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said that seven leaders who openly criticised the party will likely have their memberships and party posts suspended.
He also confirmed that some of the seven unnamed Umno leaders currently held party posts, and that the matter was currently being investigated by the party’s disciplinary board.
Tengku Adnan did not, however, reveal the names of these leaders.
At the same press conference today, Najib also announced that the council decided that the party’s Youth, Wanita and Puteri annual meets next month will each be inaugurated by their respective wing chiefs.
He also added that there was nothing “extraordinary” for the supreme council to hold its meeting today at the Parliament building, noting that the House is currently in session and this would enable the lawmakers to make it for voting.
News of the move, a departure from the council’s traditional meetings on Fridays at the party’s own headquarters at the Putra World Trade Centre, had initially prompted speculation over the change.
