UMNO has postponed its Supreme Council meeting scheduled for tomorrow that will decide whether it stays in the Perikatan Nasional government due to regional movement restrictions, say party officials. 

The conditional movement-control order (CMCO) in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Sabah will keep most Supreme Council members away from the Janda Baik meeting. 

“Everyone wants to attend this meeting in person and not through video calls. Also, they don’t want to break the CMCO,” an Umno official told The Malaysian Insight. 

“It looks like the PN government will go on for longer until Umno decides one way or the other,” a party leader added when contacted.

Interstate travel is banned during the CMCO and members felt it would be unfair on the public if the 50-odd Supreme Council members are allowed to travel to Pahang during this time.

Furthermore, with the daily increase of Covid-19 infections, members felt it was only right that the meeting be postponed until after the CMCO ends on October 27.

Malaysia today recorded 865 new Covid-19 infections, the third day in a row with more than 800 cases, bringing the total number of infections to 21,363 with 190 deaths.

The Malaysian Insight had earlier spoken to several Umno members, who had said the Supreme Council meeting will be the determining factor in whether the PN government remains in power or falls.

More than 50 of the party’s top leaders were set to attend the meeting to thrash out recent issues, including whether to support PN, which has a razor-thin majority of two seats in the 222-seat Parliament.

Among the meeting’s agenda was to support or reject the political bureau’s decision on October 13 to reassess the party’s support for PN.

After the political bureau meeting, Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan said Umno was considering withdrawing its support and will come out with new terms if it decides to continue its cooperation with Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

Party insiders told The Malaysian Insight the demands include a cabinet reshuffle in which more pertinent portfolios are given to Umno leaders and, possibly, a demand for the deputy prime minister post. 

Also on the agenda was the post-mortem of the Sabah elections.

Many Umno members were not satisfied when Bersatu’s Hajiji Noor was named chief minister instead of Umno’s state chief, Bung Moktar Radin.

This led to Umno attacks against Bersatu and its grassroots voicing unhappiness with the unfair treatment of the party.

Several Umno members said the party has been patient enough, with the Sabah chief minister episode being the final straw.

They said Muhyiddin needed to prove his sincerity and share power, adding Umno will not allow itself to be sabotaged and weakened. – October 19, 2020.