KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — Umno information chief Shahril Sufian Hamdan said today that his party is still maintaining its decision to reject any cooperation with Pakatan Harapan (PH) components PKR and DAP, amid conjectures offered by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He said the party’s supreme council still adheres to the decision made during the party’s Annual General Assembly in 2019, despite Umno’s decision to break ties with current ally Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia for the 15th general election.
“The decision is still applicable and the statements of all the top leaders of Umno have repeatedly mentioned that there is no cooperation with PKR and DAP. Rejecting cooperation with Bersatu does not mean that we must continue to be with others.
“The fact is, the council has never changed the decision which rejects cooperation with PKR and DAP,” he said in a statement today.
Shahril was responding to statements made by PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the weekend confirming that his party is open to cooperate with Umno.
He said that even if Anwar is open to comment on political negotiations, Umno is also free to focus on their own strengthening of the party which has lost its first general election ever in 2018.
“If Anwar still wants to say that there are official political negotiations and cooperation with Umno, that is his right to speak as he has been relentlessly saying that he has a majority in Parliament.
“We do not have to dance to the beat of others but instead focus fully on strengthening the internal of our own party, while working hard to win the confidence of the people,” he said.
Shahril added that Umno’s goal now is to win the support of the people with a better offer and vision than our competitors.
“Without the support of the people, Umno will not be able to gain a dominant position as expected by all party fighters who hold fast to the history and potential of Umno to continue to face the struggle of religion, race and homeland,” he said.
On Sunday, Anwar said PKR and rivals Umno are not that different ideologically, telling a Malay daily that the two camps are fundamentally striving for the same goals amid talks that the two parties could potentially align.
In an interview with Mingguan Malaysia, Anwar suggested that Umno as a party was originally formed around the ideals of good governance much like PKR, and that the former’s goal to uplift Malay socio-economic standards has always been among the cornerstone of his party’s struggle.
Anwar, himself a former Umno deputy president, said what sets the two apart is merely how PKR plans to implement those objectives.
