KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 — The Umno supreme council is yet to decide if the party, along with the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, will compete alone in the Melaka state election, according to council member Tan Sri Annuar Musa.
Annuar said that, to his knowledge, the matter will be discussed and decided at a supreme council meeting tonight.
“I think Umno needs to be more careful before putting out a statement, because sometimes statements are put out as individual opinions and can bring problems to the party,” he told reporters in Putrajaya today.
He was responding to Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s announcement yesterday that the party and BN will be standing alone in the Melaka polls, without PAS or Bersatu, who had been its allies before.
Annuar added that Umno was now leading the government through Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, and the party must not forget how important it is for the prime minister and other leaders to win the cooperation of others.
“If we reject people, then if people reject us, we will be on the losing end,” he said, adding that Umno now only holds 37 seats out of 114 parliamentary seats, meaning it requires the support of other parties to maintain power.
The Melaka state assembly was dissolved on October 4, following the withdrawal of support for chief minister Datuk Seri Sulaiman Md Ali by four assemblymen.
An election must be held within 60 days after the fact, unless a state of Emergency is declared.
