KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 — Veteran Umno politician Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah warned that it could be a “problem” for the Malays should the party disappear from the country’s political landscape.
He said the Malays will feel “lost” if one day Umno ceased to exist as it is their security blanket.
“If Umno is wiped out in Semenanjung, it will be a problem.
“The Malays equate Umno with their home. They are used to Umno protecting them.
“For the last 60 years, they have woken up to reading about them in the papers every day. They see no one else (other than from Umno), and at one point, it was all [Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad],” he said in an interview with The Malaysian Insight broadcasted on Facebook.
The Malays may feel lost if Umno no longer existed; however, this is not the case with PAS, he said.
“No, with PAS, it is not a problem because they only exist in small numbers like in Kelantan, a little in Terengganu and Kedah.
“Unlike PAS, Umno exists nationwide. We are also in Sabah; except Sarawak, we are not there because we respect them.
“We don’t want divided sentiments. We want to unite everyone and ensure there is peace among the Malays,” he said.
Even if there are concerns of infighting, Tengku Razaleigh said these are normal.
“It is OK to fight among each other in Umno, but not to the point where we pick up weapons,” he said.
When asked which party drives Perikatan Nasional (PN), like how Umno drives Barisan National (BN), Tengku Razaleigh replied PAS.
“PAS is the stronger one in PN, not Bersatu (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia).
“Where is Bersatu? Come to my constituency and see for yourself.
“Bersatu only has a committee and that is why Umno is worried if it wants to befriend someone from Bersatu. Where are they?” he asked.
He added that he was not worried about Umno losing PAS’ support.
“With PAS, we have fought non-stop with them.
“Since back in the day, I have fought with PAS.
“So if we do go into the general election alone, without PAS, there is nothing to fear since we have always been at loggerheads,” he said.
On February 26, Umno said it would not cooperate with Bersatu in the next general election.
This decision was made despite the two parties being part of the ruling PN government.
