THERE is no need for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to discuss fresh Umno polls following the party’s huge defeats in the state elections, said Supreme Council member Mohd Puad Zarkashi.

He said the March party elections had revealed a clear set of leaders.

“There are already fresh faces (among) vice-presidents and division chiefs.

“There’s no need for an EGM for party polls,” he said on Facebook today.

He said this in response to calls by some in the party for an EGM to elect new leaders following the party’s failure in the six-state elections.

Some quarters have called on party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to step down.

Puad however said it would be better for Umno to do a detailed post-mortem on the state elections at every level.

Previously, Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said Umno must conduct fresh internal polls as the only way to update itself after its poor showing in the polls.

The party won only 19 out of the 108 seats it contested in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Selangor, Penang and Negri Sembilan on August 12.

Zahid took over as president following Najib Razak’s decision not to contest in the party leadership polls following Umno’s poor performance in the 2018 general election.

The party suffered even worse defeats in last year’s general election.

In the March party polls, Zahid retained his position as president thanks to a no-contest decree for the top two posts.

He has sacked or suspended many of his critics from the party. – August 24, 2023.