The Umno Veterans Club has proposed the formal dissolution of Barisan Nasional (BN) on the grounds that the coalition was no longer relevant.
In a report by the New Straits Times, the club’s secretary-general Datuk Mustapha Yaakub said the move was merited as other BN components were ungrateful for Umno’s past patronage.
“Umno, which has been the main driver for BN, should call for a meeting of the coalition’s supreme council to discuss this,” he was quoted as saying.
This comes as four BN components – Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu, Sarawak United People’s Party, Parti Rakyat Sarawak and Progressive Democratic Party – left the coalition on Tuesday to form a Borneo-based bloc called Gabungan Parti Sarawak.
Chinese-based component MCA also said before that it considered BN alive only in name.
Mustapha argued that BN’s strength came primarily from Umno and claimed the other components merely leeched off this to remain in power.
“They forgot that Umno has 54 seats in Parliament, who is the weak one here? It’s them; MCA Gerakan and MIC cannot recover any more. They can only ride on the success in Malay-majority areas,” he told the English daily.
“If there are dissenting voices from MCA and Gerakan to expel Umno from BN, this means they have forgotten history and failed to realise that they were latching on to Umno all this while.”
He added that in order for Umno to successfully move forward, it must remember its initial objectives.
Mustapha also suggested it was time for the party to “spread its wings” to win Sarawak back. – Malay Mail