KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 6 — Khairy Jamaluddin said any section of Malaysia seeking a general election alongside the Covid-19 pandemic was “selfish” and “irresponsible”, but acknowledged that the group included those from his party, Umno.

The Science, Innovation and Technology minister said this when commenting on Code Blue editor-in-chief Boo Su-Lyn’s tweet denouncing attempts to trigger a general election amid a full-blown pandemic here in Malaysia and across the world.

“Agreed. Those calling for GE before the pandemic is brought under control are irresponsible.

“And I know among those asking for an early general election are those from my own party.

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“Don’t be selfish,” he said on Twitter.

Malaysia has been engulfed by a third wave of Covid-19 infections that sent the country’s cumulative cases from 10,000 to over 120,000 in a span of three months.

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The third wave was coincidentally linked to a premature Sabah state election last September that was triggered following a takeover attempt by Umno’s former chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman.

After a lull at the end of last year, Umno has again begun pushing for an early general election in the belief that the party could regain control of the federal government, which it lost in the 2018 general election.

While Pakatan Harapan was ousted as the federal government in February last year, the younger and smaller Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia emerged the pre-eminent political force in the federal administration, relegating Umno to a supporting role that has chafed its leaders and members.

Umno’s push to break away from the ruling Perikatan Nasional appeared to gain momentum yesterday when the party unilaterally replaced senior leader Tan Sri Annuar Musa as the secretary-general of Barisan Nasional.