KUALA LUMPUR — Parties within the unity government should not recruit members from one another, Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said today.
Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, said this is important for preserving harmony within the government coalition, Bernama reports.
He added, party members should prioritise unity over personal agendas.
“Whatever personal agenda one may have must be set aside if we want our party to be prioritised.
“Those who place their personal interest first, we leave them to be judged by party members,” Bernama quoted him saying after attending Kolej Ketengah’s 4th convocation ceremony at the World Trade Centre here today.
Zahid said this when asked about speculation that Umno Supreme Council member Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz could be joining PKR.
A news portal, quoting unnamed sources, said Zafrul, who is also Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, is set to quit the Barisan Nasional party and join PKR for a bigger role in the Selangor government in the future.
However, Zahid said Zafrul has not approached him to discuss leaving Umno.
“So, we can’t confirm this,” the BN chairman told reporters .
One former Umno leader who has joined PKR is Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin, who was expelled from Umno after he was dropped as a candidate in GE15 and contested as an independent but lost.
Zahidi, who is formerly Umno Padang Besar division chief in Perlis, and ex-deputy communications and multimedia minister, recently appeared at the launch of a new PKR branch in Beseri, Perlis.
Now the Padang Besar Madani Coordinator, he said his move to PKR has the approval of its President and Pakatan Harapan (PH) Chairman, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. – December 14, 2024