PETALING JAYA: Umno has urged DAP to resolve its differences with coalition partners through dialogue and consultation instead of issuing public ultimatums, says Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
The Umno information chief said this following DAP chairman Gobind Singh Deo’s call for party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to resign if he does not support Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s leadership.
On Thursday (Nov 12), Gobind said Barisan Nasional leaders should resign from the Cabinet rather than push for the dissolution of Parliament if they have lost confidence in the Prime Minister.
Azalina described Gobind’s statement as regrettable, saying it did little to strengthen the spirit of cooperation within the unity government.
“The government was formed following a royal decree after the 15th General Election through political negotiations and a collective understanding among the participating coalitions and parties.
“The Cooperation Agreement of the Malaysia Unity Government, signed on Dec 16, 2022, provided a framework for political cooperation, parliamentary stability and the effective functioning of the government.
“Under Clause 4 of the agreement, participating parties had undertaken to support the Prime Minister on confidence motions, supply bills and relevant procedural motions affecting the Federal government’s constitutional legitimacy,” she said in a statement on Friday (Nov 13).
However, she said this should not be interpreted as requiring coalition partners to unconditionally agree with every political position or statement made by the Prime Minister or other political leaders.
She stressed that the agreement also affirmed the signatories’ commitment to uphold the Federal Constitution, including the position of Islam, the Malays and bumiputra, as well as the institution of the Malay Rulers.
“Against this backdrop, issuing public ultimatums to the president of a coalition partner is neither constructive nor consistent with the spirit of the Coalition Agreement.
“Zahid, as Umno president and Barisan Nasional chairman, has a responsibility to safeguard the party’s interests, principles and political mandate,” she said.
She also defended the constitutional process involving the conditional pardon granted to former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, saying the power of pardon was vested in the relevant authority.
“It is therefore inappropriate to portray the exercise of this constitutional power as a unilateral political decision attributable to any political party, including Umno,” she said.
Azalina outlined four possible courses of action for DAP amid its apparent dissatisfaction with Najib’s conditional pardon.
“The first is to invoke the mediation mechanism under Clause 5(c) of the agreement, which provides for a Consultative Council comprising representatives of the participating coalitions to resolve disputes and misunderstandings.
“The second is the termination of the agreement.
“The third option was for DAP to remain calm and allow existing arrangements to continue, while the fourth was for the party to seek a review of Paragraph C of the agreement’s recitals, which Umno considered a material provision,” she said.
Azalina warned that any move to review paragraph C could have unforeseen consequences for the continuity of the unity government.
She also questioned DAP’s central executive committee decision on Sept 19, 2026, for its secretary-general to resign as Transport Minister following Najib’s conditional pardon, saying the decision was made unilaterally without prior consultation.
She added that the agreement did not prohibit coalition partners from cooperating with other parties at state level.
Azalina said Umno would continue participating in the unity government as a collective decision made in the interest of the people and the nation, while honouring its commitments, respecting the Prime Minister’s leadership and upholding the Federal Constitution.
