KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 6 — Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan today indicated that he would reply next Monday to the Registrar of Societies (RoS) on the government agency’s notification that Umno’s postponement of its party elections was invalid.

In a response on Twitter today to the RoS decision, Ahmad shared a chronology of events starting from February 19, 2021 until today (August 6, 2021) regarding issues relating to Umno’s party elections.

Umno’s party elections were initially due to be held on June 30, 2021 as the office bearers’ three-year term would have expired by then, but Umno previously maintained that its supreme council had validly postponed the party elections by the maximum 18 months allowed under the party’s own constitution.

In his chronology of events today, Ahmad included an August 9, 2021 entry (which would be next Monday) to indicate his next step of action.

"9 August 2021 SUA Umno will give a reply letter to the KP ROS. Umno lawyers have been referred to and they stated there is no error at all on the part of Umno,” the chronology written in Malay said, with SUA referring to secretary-general or Ahmad himself, while KP refers to director-general.

When contacted, Ahmad confirmed to Malay Mail the chronology which included the August 9 entry, also confirming that his upcoming letter as Umno secretary-general on August 9 would be in reply to the RoS director-general’s August 6 letter.

Earlier today, the RoS in a brief statement said the Umno supreme council’s move to postpone its internal party elections was invalid as its term already expired when the decision was made.

The RoS cited the minutes of the Umno supreme council meeting dated July 7 on the decision to postpone party polls for 18 months, but said such a decision was invalid as Umno officers’ three-year term from 2018 to 2021 had expired on June 30.

Separately, the Free Malaysia Today portal reported that the RoS has also directed Umno to hold its internal election and to inform the agency of the chosen dates as soon as possible.

This evening, Umno secretary-general Ahmad had posted on Twitter the chronology of events regarding Umno’s party elections, including the party’s supreme council’s agreement as early as February 19, 2021 to postpone the party polls that was initially due on June 30 this year.

Among other things, Ahmad’s chronology stated that there was on June 18 a decision made by 52 out of 56 Umno supreme council members through a circular resolution to agree to postpone party elections, as an online party elections had never been and could not be held.

The chronology stated that a face-to-face meeting of the Umno supreme council members could not be held due to the enhanced movement control order, and that the circular resolution was done to obtain a decision.

Ahmad’s chronology also stated that there was a letter from him as Umno secretary-general to the RoS director-general on June 24 to provide notification of the Umno supreme council’s decision.

Ahmad’s chronology said the Umno supreme council had on July 7 legitimised the June 18 decision by supreme council members to postpone party polls, and that the RoS director-general had in a letter on July 19 said there was no objection to Umno’s postponement of its party elections.

Ahmad’s chronology also showed that he had on July 30 wrote to the RoS director-general about the supreme council’s July 7 meeting minutes which legitimised the June 18 decision to postpone party elections.

He also stated the RoS director-general had in a letter today stated that the Umno supreme council’s decision to postpone party elections was invalid.

Following today’s letter, Ahmad said he will on August 9 write a reply letter to the RoS director-general, stating that Umno’s lawyers had said there was no error by the political party

Previously on June 29, Ahmad had in a statement said Umno’s supreme council had agreed for the party elections at all branches, divisions and supreme council to be postponed for 18 months starting from June 30, 2021.

He had in the June 29 public statement said the postponement decision was in line with Umno’s party constitution’s Article 10.16 where the supreme council has the right to make such postponement for division, branch, supreme council elections for a maximum 18 months from the date from which it was supposed to be held.

In a Facebook post in the early hours of July 8, Ahmad Zahid had posted his statement dated July 7, where he had said that Umno’s supreme council meeting had on July 7 met online and made various decisions, including to legitimise the decision to postpone party elections for 18 months in line with the party constitution’s Article 10.16.