Getting rid of the UMNO gang of seven

Writer: Peng Yi Feng
Oriental Daily, Nov 9, 2015

UMNO Secretary General Tengku Adnan has threatened to act against the seven party veterans and since no further details are available and that the threat did not sound very serious, nobody can guess who they are. However, as speculation continues, there are now people who dare to name names.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad fits the bill well as leader of the gang. Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah is a surprise No 2. Former Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is No 3 due probably to his reputation. He is followed by former International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz which is another big surprise.

Former Minister Tan Sri Shafie Apdal has been “sharing the same sarong” with Muhyiddin and naturally he has also been named as part of the gang. Kedah Menteri Besar Mukhriz Tun Mahathir has been more cautious with his words now but he has to give support to his father. Former Terengganu Menteri Besar Dato Seri Ahmad Said is most unfortunate because he only made one remark about the 1MDB issue. On the other hand, it is quite unexpected that former Kedah Menteri Besar Tan Sri Sanusi Junid who has been making comments about the issue and also attended Dr Mahathir’s media conference is not named.

It must be noted that this is based on speculation and naturally, there would be differences from the actual list. However, it would be too much to expect them to be sacked. Tengku Adnan only mentioned disciplinary action which may include warning, suspension of membership, or removal from party posts. The most severe punishment was meted out to former UMNO Deputy President Anwar Ibrahim who was sacked.

Dr Mahathir is a veteran and holds no party position. Tengku Razaleigh is the UMNO Gua Musang divisional chairman. If he was sacked, it could mean handing over the seat to others. Even to freeze the membership of a party veteran is a humiliation as serious as that of being sacked. Gua Musang is an UMNO fortress for the last few decades. Will the party do a self-destruction so easily?

Muhyiddin and Shafie hold the posts of UNMO deputy president and vice president and only the delegates have the power to remove them. Even the supreme council cannot touch them. However, Tengku Adnan can learn from Dr Mahathir by using the supreme council to terminate their party membership. Of course, the reason must be convincing or otherwise, there would be backlash.

The others are not as senior as Tengku Razaleigh. There is nothing to take away from Tan Sri Rafidah. To remove her membership would be an over-kill and would not serve as a lesson to anybody. It also serves no purpose to warn her. In the case of Mukhriz, his posts as the Kedah Menteri Besar and UMNO state liaison chairman were appointed by the Prime Minister. UMNO Supreme Council has no power to take any action against him. There is no such necessity. As for Ahmad Said, he has previously forced Najib to make an apology to him. If he was disciplined, people might think that the Prime Minister is being too mean.

The UMNO Supreme Council is the highest authority when the annual delegates conference is in recess. But this does not mean that the council could do anything it likes. It does not have the authority to sack Muhyiddin or Shafie. They could only step down when delegates propose to change the deputy president and vice president.

Original Source:
剷除巫统七人帮