KUALA LUMPUR: While Covid-19 is showing promising signs of abating, the same cannot be said about the country’s political landscape in light of the upcoming Umno general assembly (PAU2020), scheduled to take place over the weekend.
Political analysts expect that the highlight of the two-day delegates’ conference from Saturday could be a motion for Umno to sever ties with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) in the 15th General Election (GE15), with heated debates set to raise the temperature at the Kuala Lumpur World Trade Centre between three factions within the party.
Geopolitical expert Azmi Hassan said while the motion for the party to cut ties with Bersatu had sparked the existence of the two camps, current developments in the country’s political landscape could indicate the presence of another group within Umno.
This, he said, referred to a group within the party that was in favour of cooperation between Umno and PKR as well as Pakatan Harapan as whole, should the former go ahead with the proposal to sever ties with Bersatu.
“No doubt, it will be a heated meeting this weekend since there are a number of groups within Umno. Depending on how influential they are and their strength in presenting their case, what we will learn when it’s over is the direction of the party where GE15 is concerned.
“The question is whether the party will go into the next polls alone, maintain their cooperation with Bersatu, or form a new cooperation pact with PKR and Pakatan Harapan instead,” he told the New Straits Times.
Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan said among the motions that would be raised at PAU2020 included the party’s ties with Bersatu leading up to GE15. Other motions include strengthening the party’s relations with Pas through the Muafakat Nasional pact, and pushing for GE15 before the end of the first quarter of this year.
Shahril said the Umno Supreme Council in a meeting in January agreed to raise the motions during PAU2020, following feedback from 189 party divisions nationwide.
“Although it seemed that Umno is confident of going solo (for the next general election) but deep in the hearts and minds of Umno leaders, they still want the party to cooperate with other parties outside Barisan Nasional.
“It will be interesting to see how the party will manoeuvre this agenda,” he said.
Another political analyst, Associate Professor Dr Awang Azman Awang Pawi concurred with Azmi that PAU2020 would turn out into a heated event as the party deliberates on its decision to end ties with Bersatu for GE15.
Awang Azman, who is from Universiti Malaya, said although this was not a surprise, the event would still be under control.
“The issue surrounding the future of political cooperation between Umno and Bersatu is nothing new among political observers. Although it will be a heated event, it will be straightforward. The general assembly will proceed accordingly and be under control,” he said.
Awang Azman said there was a possibility that the disgruntled group might try to dispute the leadership of Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, but such efforts would likely be derailed mostly due to the complex workings within Umno.
“It will be difficult for some quarters to challenge Zahid’s leadership since he was appointed as the party president b the delegates.
” In addition, Zahid still wields the power to decide on the candidate that will represent the party in the next general election,” he said.
Apart from deciding on the future cooperation between Umno and Bersatu, Awang Azman said PAU2020 would also serve as a platform for the party to intensify its cooperation with Pas under Muafakat Nasional, apart from allowing the party president to close ranks among all leaders and members within Umno in preparation for GE15.
Both political analysts believed that Zahid’s position would remain secure at the end of PAU2020.
“I think the meeting (PAU2020) will be favourable to Zahid since he still commands a lot of support within Umno.
“Since the party is still clamouring for Muafakat Nasional to be realised, Zahid is deemed the best leader to realise such an aspiration.
“Taking these factors into consideration, I believe PAU2020 will conclude with a positive tone for Zahid,” he said.
Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan had said that PAU2020 would create a history of sorts for the party, since it would be the first time that the party’s general assembly is being held both face-to-face and on a virtual platform involving 190 divisions.
Public observers and Umno members who are not delegates are not allowed to attend PAU2020, in line with the standard operating procedures to curb the spread of Covid-19.-NST