PETALING JAYA: Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has officially appealed to rejoin the party, declaring “I’m coming home” in a move warmly received by party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
Expressing his gratitude for the opportunity to continue his political struggle during the holy month of Ramadan, Khairy said he has submitted an official request for his expulsion to be rescinded, and his original membership number reactivated.
“I thank the Umno president for receiving my visit in the spirit of the Rumah Bangsa (Home of the Nation) initiative during this noble month of Ramadan.
“With a big heart, the president has welcomed me back to my old home, the only home I know,” Khairy said in a statement yesterday, where he added that he appreciated Ahmad Zahid’s openness in paving the way forward to strengthen the party.
In the statement, Khairy said he hopes the president, the Umno supreme council and the Rumah Bangsa committee will consider his request favourably.
Khairy stressed that amid current political uncertainties, it is crucial to strengthen Umno, which he described as the “ship of the nation’s struggle”, established to unite the Malays and develop the country.
“I am not asking to return to this ship with any conditions, personal desires, or demands. It is enough that I am given the chance to be an ordinary crew member.
“If there is a loose board, I will help tighten it. If a nail needs to be hammered, I will help hammer it. If a hatch needs to be sealed tight so water doesn’t enter, I will make sure it is securely locked,” he said.
Khairy added that what matters most is that the ship continues to sail through the storms of time, bringing with it the hope of a united, strong and dignified nation.
“God willing, I’m coming home,” he said.
In a Facebook post yesterday, Ahmad Zahid confirmed he had accepted Khairy’s application, and that he will forward it to the Rumah Bangsa unity committee for consideration.
The committee is chaired by party vice-president Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
“Rumah Bangsa is an effort to reunite those who were once apart, strengthen the bonds that have weakened and bring us together as one large family of struggle,” Ahmad Zahid wrote.
He said that the priority was to find ways to halt divisions from continuing.
“What matters most is finding the path to unity, not letting differences separate us,” he added.
Ahmad Zahid said he hoped the initiative would serve as a way to reconnect hearts that were once separated, reinforce the party’s ranks, and restore Umno as the main political anchor for Malays and Muslims in the country.
The Deputy Prime Minister also uploaded several photographs of himself receiving the appeal letter from Khairy, with the two seen sharing a light moment.
Mooted by Ahmad Zahid, the Rumah Bangsa initiative allows former members to return to the party without conditions.
In January 2023, Khairy was sacked from Umno during a party purge that also saw other leaders, including Sembrong MP Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, former Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan and former Tebrau Umno chief Maulizan Bujang, suspended for six years.
On March 12, Hishammuddin said he was ready to play an active role in Umno again if his suspension is lifted.
