Is this the end for Dr Akmal?

The Umno Youth leader will be the headline of the Umno general assembly that is coming on the heels of a disastrous showing in Sabah and with little sign that it has regained Malay support.

THE year 2026 started well for Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The Umno president has been cleared of the 47 charges of corruption and money-laundering that had haunted his career like a dark shadow.

The Attorney General’s Chambers announcement of no further action on the case arrived like a belated birthday gift for Ahmad Zahid who turned 73 a few days earlier.

However, the response from the Umno rank-and-file was muted.

They seemed unsure of what to make of it although Umno Youth chief Datuk Akmal Saleh was reported as saying that it was a sign that “the prayers of the persecuted will be answered”.

The Pakatan Harapan side which would have raised hell and rolled on the streets once upon a time has largely kept a not-so-golden silence.

Within Umno, there are now whispers that nothing and no one would be able to stop Ahmad Zahid from another term as Umno president.

Dr Akmal’s call for Umno to become an “honourable opposition” is now dead in the water. He made the call at a political convention where he also urged Umno to work with PAS.

But another bombshell dropped a few days later when Dr Akmal, who was in Shanghai, indicated to his close circle that he planned to resign as the Youth chief as well as Merlimau assemblymen and all other party positions.

Dr Akmal had suddenly become the man of the hour just days before the Umno general assembly kicks off on Wednesday (Jan 14).

Everyone, inside and outside Umno, will be watching whether he lives up to his “jantan”, or macho, reputation and resign

At the same time, questions are flooding social media about what triggered such a dramatic move. There are also doubts that it is genuine and that it is a charade to rally support ahead of the party’s annual gathering.

Some even think the resignation drama is a plot hatched by Dr Akmal and Ahmad Zahid to divert attention from the party’s unfulfilled pledge to free Datuk Seri Najib Razak and its failure in Sabah where it won only five seats and lost the deposit in 12 seats.

Umno politicians privately blame Ahmad Zahid for sticking with the late Sabah Umno chairman Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin who, though popular in Kinabatangan, almost lost in his state seat of Lamag.

It was dishonest to keep Bung’s failing health a secret. The man was not only going in and out of court for his corruption trial, he was also checking in and out of the hospital.

“There was no post-mortem after the general election or after the Sabah election. You need to know the mistakes made to avoid making them again,” said an aide to a former minister.

According to the same aide, Dr Akmal felt that he was sticking out his neck for “bangsa, agama dan negara” (race, religion and country) type of issues or what is known as “my country, right or wrong” kind of sentiments.

But top Umno leaders did not stand by him and he is currently facing sedition charges.

There has been a deluge of motions coming in from Umno divisions all over the country for the party general assembly to press for a full pardon for Najib.

The Najib cause is like a popular karaoke song for Umno to sing at convenient events whereas very few believe that the powers-that-be want him freed.

There is also the elephant in the room - Umno has failed to win back Malay support, and it has been running on the spot.

The party is seen as a second fiddle, a supporting act or according to political commentator Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, a “glamorous puppet” of the Madani government.

Dr Akmal was also stung by the criticism during an Umno political bureau meeting earlier this week when the Mentri Besar of Pahang and Perak did not hold back and lectured him for hurting the stability of their states where Umno and Pakatan are partners.

To rub salt into injury, Pahang Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail, who is also a vice-president, publicly said DAP was “easier to work with”.

No one defended Dr Akmal when Melaka’s DAP Youth wing called for his resignation as a state executive councillor.

DAP was behaving like a guest ordering the host to get out of his own house.

Barisan Nasional won the state on its own strength in 2021 and DAP was brought onboard as a gesture of goodwill.

“He will be pushed to the edge if he faces more criticism at the general assembly. But there could also be calls for him to reconsider his move from the delegates and the top leadership. I can see the president having the final say,” said Umno political insider and lawyer Ainul Aizat Ahmad Ishak.

Dr Akmal and Ahmad Zahid are not close and the former is regarded as a “Bossku man”.

“Zahid knows where Akmal is coming from because he was once the leader of Umno Youth. Akmal is useful because he says things the top Umno leadership cannot,” said the above aide to a former minister.

The annual gatherings of Umno are no longer the grand, must-watch events as in the years when Umno called the shots in government.

Umno ministers are actually performing well in the government but the party has failed to recover the Malay support it once commanded.

Political risk consultant Datuk Wan Shihab Wan Ismail said that even with Bersatu and PAS in self-destruction mode, very few Malay voters will abandon PAS for Umno.

“The base wants to go this way but the party is going that way. Tying up with DAP is crossing a red line for the Umno base yet leaders are in denial that this erodes their support. How can they hold on to their base if they have to defend DAP?” said Wan Shihab.

Meanwhile, Dr Akmal’s political career is on the line.

He will be hailed as a hero if he carries out his threat to resign and become an even bigger nuisance to the Madani government.

But if he backs down and stays on, the show will be over and he will be mocked as a paper tiger.

Will Dr Akmal be the hero or the victim of his own story?