Stage set for the sacking of duo

PETALING JAYA: The stage is set for the sacking of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir from Umno after they signed a citizens’ declaration calling for the ouster of the Prime Minister.

Two Umno supreme council members have started the ball rolling by urging the party leadership to expel the former deputy prime minister and the former Kedah mentri besar at the next party supreme council meeting.

At the same time, two Umno divisions – Subang and Bera – have called for former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to be stripped of all privileges given to him by the Government, including posts as adviser to Petronas and chairman of Proton and Perdana Leadership Foundation.

The Subang Umno division also urged the party and Barisan Nasional to organise a gathering to show support for Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on March 27 – the same day the anti-Najib group is sche­duled to hold a rally to pressure him to quit.

Umno supreme council member Datuk Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi said he would propose the motion to sack Muhyiddin and Mukhriz at the next council meeting, expected to be held at the end of the month.

Puad said the participation of Muhyiddin and Mukhriz in a declaration to oust the Prime Minister could “not be forgiven”.

“Their decision to ‘bersekongkol’ (conspire) with DAP was done deli­berately. It is a betrayal against what Umno has been fighting all this while, which is to reject DAP’s agenda,” he said.

On Friday, Dr Mahathir, Muhyid­din and Mukhriz were among more than 50 politicians, including those from the Opposition and civil society activists who signed the declaration.

Mukhriz resigned as Kedah mentri besar on Feb 3 while Muhyiddin was suspended as Umno deputy president on Feb 26 but both remain as party members.

Dr Mahathir quit Umno on Feb 29, the second time he had done so since 2008.

Supreme council member Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said Muhyiddin and Mukhriz should be kicked out of Umno because they had “crossed the line”.

“We will need to discuss this du­ring the next supreme council meeting. Certainly, my personal opinion is to kick them out.

“Just like how Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng kicked out two assemblymen for not voting for a resolution against Umno at the State Assembly, we will follow the style,” he said.

Another council member, Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek, said the party should do what it did against members who went against its top leaders in the past.

“What did Dr Mahathir and Muhyiddin do when they were in power against those who committed such actions?

“The party leadership must stick to the rules in taking action,” he said.

Subang Umno division chief Datuk Zein Isma Ismail, who called for the withdrawal of all privileges granted to Dr Mahathir, said any Umno member who supported the call to oust Najib should be punish­ed similarly.

“We condemn the involvement of party leaders and members who signed the declaration and agreed to attend the March 27 gathering organised by the Opposition,” he said.

The Bera Umno division, which met yesterday, also called for Dr Mahathir to be stripped of his posts at the Perdana Leadership Founda­tion, Petronas and Proton.

In a statement it also expressed its disappointment with Muhyiddin, Mukhriz and other members who joined hands with the Opposition and NGOs, which it described as “enemies of Umno and the Government”.

“The move to work with Umno’s enemies to topple our party president should be regarded as a declaration of war against Umno and its members,” it said.

The division also rejected the declaration calling for the resignation of Najib.

“They are unqualified and don’t have the right to represent the people.

“It is no more than an illegal movement to cause instability and affect the harmony of a multi-racial country,” it said.

An aide to Muhyiddin said the former deputy prime minister would not issue any immediate statement on the matter.

One of Mukhriz’s aides said the former Kedah mentri besar would not comment until Puad lodged a formal complaint.