JOHOR BARU, Nov 21 — Johor Umno has indicated that establishing a federal government under a political coalition would not need DAP’s involvement.

Johor Umno chief Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad said the priority now is for current political parties to form a stable coalition.

“For the time being, the importance of the political parties is to form a functional federal government geared towards a moderate understanding to lead Malaysia in the face of future social and economic challenges.

“Therefore, Johor Umno is of the opinion that the political coalition does not need DAP’s involvement,” said Hasni in a statement today.

Last night, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) coalition chief Tan Sri Abang Johari Abang Openg announced that it had jointly agreed to form a federal government with three more coalitions, namely Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Barisan Nasional (BN).

Abang Johari was reported to have said that the decision to form a mixed government was made to strengthen and stabilise the country, as well as the people’s welfare.

However, earlier this morning, it was reported that the Umno president, who is also the BN chief, along with several party leaders held a meeting with the Pakatan Harapan (PH) leadership, including its chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim at the Seri Pacific Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

“In GE15, BN reportedly managed to secure only 30 parliamentary seats, which is a figure lower than they achieved in the 2018 national polls.

“For the previous general election (GE14), Umno managed to secure 54 parliamentary seats,” he said.

Based on the official decision of the Election Commission (EC), several seats won by Umno in GE14 have switched over to the Perikatan National (PN) coalition.

In that case, Hasni, who won the Simpang Renggam parliament seat, said Johor Umno accepted and respected the people’s decision in the GE15.

He said the decision to hold GE15 is quite clear and an acknowledgment of the maturity of the people in Malaysia’s democratic culture.

“The decision of GE15 is also a clear signal by the people to both Umno and BN.

“Therefore, Johor Umno believes that the party president will take a clear and principled responsibility for the continuity of the party, especially for the Malays,” he said.

“The Umno party election that will be held soon needs to take place based on Umno’s recovery framework.

“The voters’ belief in this party needs to be restored immediately so that Umno can be trusted by all Malaysians again,” he said.