Umno to decide on Perikatan tomorrow, says Tajuddin Abdul Rahman

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 19 — Umno will decide whether to keep supporting the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition tomorrow, supreme council member Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman said.

He told Utusan Malaysia the Umno leadership will meet tomorrow in Pahang after they postponed an earlier meeting scheduled to take place in Kuala Lumpur last Saturday.

The meeting was shifted to Pahang to allow leaders to physically attend as there is a conditional movement control order in the Klang Valley.

Tajuddin told the Malay daily that Umno has repeatedly given clear signals to their allies in PN.

“Whether Umno will go left or right, everything will be decided after the MT (supreme council) meeting. It will take two to three days or up to a week after the MT has made its decision.

“What I mean is, the fate of the government will be decided after the MT meeting. We will decide Umno’s direction first and then the decision to stay with the government or to pull out will be made by the MT.

“We have given clear signals, didn’t you get them?” he said.

Tajuddin explained that Umno has two options if they do not support PN: to seek new partners or stand as the Opposition.

“In politics, it is the aspirations of all parties to be the government. If unable to form the government, the party will give service to the people and the country. Not necessarily for you to form the government and only then you could serve the people.

“Even PAS is new in the [federal] government. PAS exists as a political party. Not only exist but active,” he said.

Tajuddin said “new partners” meant Umno would continue to strengthen their cooperation within the Muafakat Nasional pact with PAS and even Parti Amanah Negara, as the latter also put an emphasis on Islam and Malays.

Tajuddin then said the PN administration would not face critical issues if Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin appointed the president of Umno as the deputy prime minister.

He said it was Umno’s right as they are the party with the most seats within the government today.

“Muhyiddin must remember that we (Umno) came in with an immense strength to form the government. Without us, the government would not have been able to form. 

“If Muhyiddin knows what he needs to do before, the position of deputy [prime minister] is given to Umno, then all this wouldn’t have happened,’’ he said.