Ku Li to contest Umno presidency

KUALA LUMPUR: Veteran politician Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah has confirmed he will contest the post of Umno president.

The 81-year-old Kelantanese royal made the announcement at a press conference at his home in Jalan Langgak Golf on Saturday (June 16).

"After looking at the position of Umno and the implications of what I want to do, especially in terms of leadership, I hereby offer myself as candidate for president.

"I made this decision in the interest of Umno as a national political party that wants to uphold racial unity and harmony at the core of the nation," he said. Razaleigh is set to go up against the acting president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in the Umno polls on June 30.

He was accompanied by Umno Supreme Council members Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani and Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

Umno has 191 divisions and about three million members.

This is Razaleigh's second attempt at scoring the post.

The Gua Musang MP, affectionately called Ku Li, had 31 years ago challenged Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for the Umno presidency.