Only BN can kill off political ‘snakes’, says Ahmad Zahid

KOTA KINABALU: Barisan Nasional must not allow “snakes” to strike and damage them again, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, referring to events that transpired after the Sabah election.

The Umno president said for instance, Barisan was promised the chief minister’s post but another name was proposed before the end of nomination day.

He likened backstabbers and those who played them out as “snakes”, including former Barisan leaders who crossed over to Perikatan Nasional or who contested as independents in seats also contested by Barisan.

“There was a gentlemen’s agreement that we take care of our area and they take care of theirs,” said Ahmad Zahid during his speech at the Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) tri-annual conference here on Saturday (Feb 12).

He said Barisan was weak back then, especially after losing during GE14.

“But in GE15, we must make sure we emerge stronger and win big. We must kill the ‘snakes’ first and not let them strike again. Who can kill it? Only Barisan,” he said without mentioning any names.

Ahmad Zahid urged Barisan and its component parties to learn from past experiences and to put party interests above all else to stay relevant and become stronger.

Asked if Barisan was adamant about working alone in future state and general elections, he said their stand was clear as seen in the Melaka and Johor elections.

For Sabah, Ahmad Zahid said the situation was different as Barisan is part of the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) coalition.

“A thorough analysis of the overall situation will be made first before any decision is made here in Sabah,” he said.

On the cooperation between Barisan and GRS in Sabah, Ahmad Zahid said the Barisan constitution states that they can accept other coalitions but they cannot be a member of more than one coalition.

“Sabah Umno supports the GRS government and in principle supports the move to register (the coalition) as an entity,” he said.

“But our limitation is that Umno is the core of the Barisan coalition and the priority is to be in Barisan, same as PBRS, which is also part of Barisan,” he said.