Don’t sabotage party, Tun Dr Mahathir tells Umno leaders

'Dr Mahathir urged Umno leaders to back the party's candidates regardless of whether they were local or "parachuted" in.'

Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today reiterated his advice for Umno leaders to discard self-interest and acts of sabotage to ensure a Barisan Nasional (BN) victory in the next general election.
The former Umno president said victory for the party would mean a continuation of BN administration in the country although some leaders would have to give way to others.

"The defeat of Umno would be akin to the Malays losing power in their own country. We cannot afford to be disunited. It is important for us to pool our resources.

"I am convinced that we can win if we can discard acts of sabotage," he said in his address at a meeting with Umno leaders from Kedah at Dewan Wawasan, here.

Dr Mahathir advised all party members to support the selected electoral candidates, even those "parachuted" (brought from elsewhere) to a constituency by the leadership.

He said he felt that the right time for the next general election was after Aidilfitri in August.

Later, when speaking at function organised by Penang Umno veterans in George Town, Penang, Dr Mahathir said the Malays in the state could be "kingmakers" in the next election.

He said this was because the Chinese, who form the majority in the state, were evenly split and thus the Malay votes would be the determining factor as to whether Pakatan Rakyat could continue to rule Penang or the state falls back into the hands of the Barisan Nasional (BN).

BN lost Penang to the opposition for the first time in the 2008 general election. — Bernama