Umno says it will work with Bersatu until election is called
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Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan said that supporting the government now is important as the country is facing a pandemic.
PHOTO: THE STAR ONLINE
PONTIAN • Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan does not rule out the possibility of another "grand coalition" of political parties to be formed after the next general election.
The Johor MP noted that the present Perikatan Nasional (PN) government, too, is a coalition of various political parties.
"This government was not made entirely from PN but also Barisan Nasional (BN) and GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak).
"However, to win the upcoming general election, another coalition of various political parties could be forged to form a government," he said.
PN is a loose alliance of 12 political parties which took power at the end of February last year following the collapse of the four-party Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition which won the 2018 general election.
But PN is on shaky ground as Umno, with the biggest number of lawmakers in PN, is straining to be free itself from the leadership of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who is from the rival-turned-ally Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu).
Umno last week made clear its official decision not to work with Bersatu at the next national polls, which are expected by the end of this year.
Umno, in a letter signed by party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, said its highest decision-making body, the supreme council, in a meeting on Feb 19, agreed not to cooperate with Bersatu at the next polls.
But Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said that until Parliament is dissolved and the election is called, Umno will continue to support the present PN government.
"The important thing right now is we will support the government until dissolution of Parliament as we are still facing the Covid-19 pandemic," he said.
"It is up to the government to do it but until it happens, Umno is still together with this coalition government."
Meanwhile, Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) - the third Malay-Muslim party in PN after Umno and Bersatu - said it remains committed to strengthening ties with its two main allies for the stability of the year-old government.
PAS is keen to see Umno and Bersatu working together with it to form a solid Malay-Muslim bloc to thwart the challenge of PH led by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
PH, now a three-member coalition after Bersatu left, comprises Mr Anwar's multiracial Parti Keadilan Rakyat, the Chinese-dominated Democratic Action Party and a moderate Islamic faction, Parti Amanah Negara.
THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
