UMNO Supreme Councillor Mohd Puad Zarkashi is confident the party will leave the Perikatan Nasional government before August 1, reports Sinar Harian.

The former Batu Pahat MP said the majority of the council members were ready to quit the government.

“I am confident that the Umno Supreme Council will convene virtually soon to finalise the 2020 Umno general assembly’s decision for the party to withdraw its support for the PN government by August 1,” he said in the report.

However, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s move to take the party out of the ruling coalition has met with resistance from many of the party MPs.

Over the last 24 hours, Zahid has engaged with the lawmakers over the Umno decision to quit the coalition while dissenting MPs have met over the weekend to discuss their options.

On June 21, the Umno political bureau led by Zahid had issued an ultimatum to the PN government to convene Parliament within 14 days. The deadline expired yesterday.

The prime minister did not convene the legislature within the time period demanded by the Umno leader, but he has since announced that Parliament will meet on July 26.

Puad said that will have no effect on the party’s plan to part ways with PN.

“Umno’s reasons are clear. It stems from the government’s failure in various issues, particularly on the management of the Covid-19 pandemic and economy.

“Umno does not want to be entangled in the PN government’s failures. Moreover, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin does not listen to Umno’s views,” he told the Malay-language daily. – July 6, 2021.