KUCHING, July 30: United Malays National Organisation (Umno) will not be formally joining the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government.
According to national daily The Star, Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was quoted as saying that the political party will not be joining PN but maintain a close relationship with Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (Pas) through Muafakat Nasional.
He was reported to have said the party’s decision not to join PN formally did not mean that it had withdrawn its support for the federal government.
“Our decision is that we are not going to be a component member of Perikatan if it were to be registered,” he told reporters at the Federal Court in Kuala Lumpur today.
In the meantime, the PN pact is yet to be registered with the Registrar of Societies (ROS).
Currently, Umno has 39 Members of Parliament, Pas has 18 MPs and Bersatu has 29 MPs.
Barisan Nasional which is made up of Umno, Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) and Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) has 43 MPs including two from MCA, one from MIC and one from PBRS.
Earlier, Umno supreme council member Datuk Seri Tajuddin Abdul Rahman said that Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) was expected to make an announcement on its cooperation with Muafakat Nasional.
He said an agreement between Bersatu and Muafakat Nasional was expected to be signed soon. —DayakDaily
