PETALING JAYA: Umno vice-president Mohamed Khaled Nordin said today those who claim there should be no dominant Malay party “fail to understand the nature of national politics”, are insensitive and make no effort to help the Malays.
Saying Umno and PAS were strong enough to be dominant, he added: “The others will cause the space to be a little bit crowded.”
On Sunday, Pahang PPBM secretary Saifuddin Abdullah had said the question of whether PPBM, PAS or Umno would be more dominant if they were to form a coalition to face the 15th general election should not arise.
He had said that in the current situation, all parties should be willing to work together and prioritise the people’s interest and welfare.
“Present-day politics should be viewed from the current situation. Let’s not be influenced by the old political framework which will make it difficult for us to work, as what is important is to place the people first,” Saifuddin had said.
Khaled, however, said in a statement that a dominant Malay party had existed in the political landscape for a long time “and cannot be removed just like that”.
In fact, he said, a dominant Malay party was essential in ensuring stability in national politics.
“Whether this statement is sensitive or not, this is a fact.”
He added that those who intended to diminish Umno’s influence were weak. He said they were aware that Malay politics was important, but did not have any agenda to make it work.
“Umno’s mission is to regain control of the government through Barisan Nasional (BN) along with the cooperation of PAS, and no one can and should stop it,” Khaled said.