AT the end of the Umno annual general assembly yesterday, the clear winner was Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who claimed a stronger grip on the party and its direction, analysts said.

The almost unanimous decision by delegates not to have any contest for the president and deputy president posts now allows Zahid to keep his presidency for another three-year term, and most likely lead the party to the next general election.

This also means Umno is unlikely to rock Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government, they added.

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) political analyst Mazlan Ali said Zahid, now without any strong challenge from within Umno, would remain loyal to the unity government.

“Zahid as president will definitely bring stability to Anwar’s government because he is a strong supporter of the unity government.

“By remaining as president, I am confident that Zahid’s support for Anwar as prime minister will continue to grow in the future,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Mazlan said the no-contest decision also showed that Zahid had full support from within his party, even though there were groups that had opposed the motion from being approved. 

“With this support, Zahid will not be challenged in the party election and it shows that he has the full support of the grassroots.

“There is no allegation that Zahid is a dictator because the one who made the decision not to allow the contest came from the delegates and not any individual,” he said.

International Islamic University of Malaysia (UIAM) professor Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar said the position of the unity government would be at stake if there had been a contest for Umno’s top post and Zahid lost.

“Zahid’s position will definitely strengthen Anwar’s position in the government. This is because if he loses the election, even if that is unlikely to happen, the individual (his opponent) may not continue to support the unity government and will bring him down.”

Tunku Mohar did not rule out the possibility that the delegates did not want a split in the party due to the presidential race, thus their decision to opt for a no-contest situation.

He said Umno will now have to face more challenges in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang, Negri Sembilan and Selangor during the state polls.

“It is very likely that they do not want to see a bigger split in the party, but I believe that if there was a challenge, Zahid would have won.

“He has an advantage as a deputy minister, but the party elections will divide Umno, which is now weak,” he said.

Terengganu Umno chief Ahmad Said said with the two top posts unchallenged, the party can now focus on uniting to face the state elections. 

“We lost Terengganu, Kelantan, and Kedah in GE15 due to money politics. The decision (not to challenge the tops posts) brings us new direction for us to unite. Even in defeat are able to foster unity and focus on the six states.

“If there is no contest for the top posts they can focus on the state elections. If they lose (the election) there will be sullen people, sabotage and no unification. We know there will be disappointment.”

Ahmad also said the motion was done through a show of hands and 90% of the delegates agreed that the two chief posts should not be challenged.

Bring back friends

University of Tasmania political analyst, James Chin, said Umno needed to avoid any split ahead of the state elections in order to win the Malay vote.

“Umno members were disappointed with the result of GE15 so now they decided they need to regain the support of the Malay voters.

“They no longer want to have to fight in the party through their elections,” he said.

Johor assemblyman from Larkin Mohd Hairi Mad Shah hopes that Zahid can ease the situation through negotiations with his adversaries in Umno. 

“Bring back friends who are not on the same page or have different views to the table. Because in the end, good or bad, people hate to see infighting.” 

The Johor Umno Youth leader said through negotiations, division within the party could be resolved.

“There will always be criticism or accusations against any party leader. 

“The division may not be big, that’s why I hope for an immediate negotiation between the president and groups that feel discouraged or are not in line with the president’s views.

“I am confident that with an open spirit, all groups that disagree (with Zahid) can finally be reunited,” he said.

Among those who were said to be ready to challenge Zahid for the president’s post was former Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin.

Khairy yesterday claimed that there were flaws in the party’s annual meeting when the no-contest motion was approved through the participation of imported delegates.  

Party leaders denied this, with Zahid alluding that the party disciplinary board would investigate Khairy for making such a claim. – January 15, 2023.