KUALA LUMPUR, April 25 — Umno is only working with Bersatu to form the Perikatan Nasional at the moment but has no qualms contesting against its so-called ally in the next general election, said Datuk Mohamad Hasan.
The Umno deputy president made the declaration on Facebook in response to a DAP leader’s suggestion that the Malay nationalist party was caught in a quandary as a result of its cooperation with Bersatu.
“Umno never joined Perikatan Nasional because it is not a registered political entity like Barisan Nasional.
“Umno’s link to PN is only an understanding to save Malaysia from the political chaos triggered by a certain section within Pakatan Harapan,” he said.
Mohamad added that this alliance did not mean Umno must share its traditional seats with Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s Bersatu as believed, and that his party would contest in the areas traditionally considered its strongholds with its official partners.
He added that this essentially meant PN was purely a passing agreement to form the government to take over from PH that collapsed.
The Umno leader known as Tok Mat contrasted this to the Muafakat Nasional cooperation between his part and PAS, which he said was formalised through a common charter that was endorsed by their respective annual assemblies.
Umno’s alliance with MCA and MIC was also similarly official, he said.
The remarks echo that of PAS vice-president Datuk Mohd Amar Abdullah, who previously called the PN alliance an ad hoc arrangement reached purely to end the country’s political turmoil in February.
It is unclear what triggered the open hostility towards Bersatu but Umno’s dissatisfaction are likely linked to its unhappiness with being a junior partner in the coalition.
The Malay nationalist party has repeatedly complained that it was not being treated fairly in terms of positions within the government despite being the largest party in the informal alliance.
