KUALA LUMPUR: Umno deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan has hinted that the 16th General Election (GE16) should be held sooner rather than later, urging the party grassroots to begin preparations immediately.
Tok Mat, as he is fondly known, disagreed with a delegate’s call for the government to serve the full term, saying that it could instead see others moving to put Umno down first.
“If we wait until the current government’s term ends, we (Umno) may be finished instead.
“They will use all sorts of tricks and tactics to weaken and bury us, so we are no longer seen as a threat.
“We leave it to our president (Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi) to hold any discussions,” he said when winding up debates on the president’s policy speech at the Umno Annual General Assembly here on Saturday (Sept 12).
Tok Mat also advised Ahmad Zahid to keep discussions on political cooperation hush, stressing that strengthening the party is of utmost importance.
“I would be lying if I said there are others who want to help us. Let’s not dream of this, as no one wants to see us rise again.
“Everyone wants to see us finished, but those who had attempted to do that instead saw it happening to themselves. Umno is still standing here today,” he said.
He added that the times when only one side formed the government had passed, explaining that the way forward was to understand sentiments on the ground.
Tok Mat, however, stressed that any political understandings with others should not be one-sided.
He suggested that the sincerity of current understandings be embedded in one of the SG4 states following the Melaka state polls.
At the Negri Sembilan polls, Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional formed an electoral understanding, resulting in them winning 25 out of 36 seats in the state assembly.
The SG4 group of states - Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, and Perlis - are meanwhile held by Perikatan.
PAS, a Perikatan component party, leads the Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah state governments.
“Let’s try an election there and see what formula is used, perhaps in Terengganu. Show us your sincerity.
“We have fulfilled our word in Negri Sembilan and want to test how far this sincerity will go,” he said.
