KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — Former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman has denied that Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's Muar division has withdrawn its statement of support for him following his sacking from the party last week.

In a statement issued by his press secretary today, he reiterated the division’s stance, after its meeting last Saturday (May 30), in which it said all members collectively backed Syed Saddiq as a Bersatu member.

“YB Syed Saddiq would like to say unequivocally that rumours the Muar Bersatu division has withdrawn its statement on the sacking of YB Saddiq are wholly untrue.

“The meeting of the Muar Bersatu division of May 30, 2020 unanimously supported YB Syed Saddiq as a member of Bersatu.  

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"Yesterday, the Muar Bersatu Women and Youth wings once again voiced their support for Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's leadership as party chairman and YB Saddiq as Muar division chief," it read.

Similarly, the statement also claimed that Bersatu's strategic bureau chief and supreme council member Datuk Rais Hussin Mohamed Ariff supports Syed Saddiq as the party’s national Youth wing chief.

In a Tweet yesterday, Rais had said it would be hard to imagine Armada without the former minister as it was “just so wrong”.

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However, Syed Saddiq's claims appear to run contrary to the sentiments of some Muar division committee members, who said on Sunday (May 31) that they had only attended Saturday’s meeting with him out of respect.

In a statement, the 14 division committee members, led by chairman Ahmad Atan, said they stand firm that all party matters must be decided based on its constitution, and that they agreed with Syed Saddiq's termination after it was announced.

Syed Saddiq, along with Dr Mahathir, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, Datuk Amiruddin Hamzah and Maszlee Malik, were removed from Bersatu on Thursday (May 28) by secretary-general Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin because they had sat with Opposition members during the Dewan Rakyat assembly on May 18.