Malaysia's GOP need a reality check

In the early part of this season of annual UMNO Divisional meetings, voices have emerged to demand that UMNO break-out from the Unity Government. It came from groups within UMNO exploiting PH's colossal lost at the Sungai Bakap by-election. 

Among the voices are the faction aligned to the 11 BN MPs that signed the SDs after the 15th General Election to support Tan Sri Muhyiddin form a marginal majority government akin to the Perikatan Nasional government of 2020-22.   

There is also voices expressing the reluctance of grassroot members to accept the current political reality of a Unity Government. 

This segment of UMNO members either could not cope with the sentiment of being in a coalition with DAP and ridiculed as UMDAP or unable to accept Anwar Ibrahim, UMNO's former political enemy as Prime Minister. It is partly attributed to peer pressure from former UMNO members, who migrated to PN. 

And it is also partly in-denial of the party's present predicament. They initially digested the party's explanation that the Unity Government was to respect the request of the Yang Di Pertuan Agong, but could not come to term with the party's decline in fortune. 

Among them, there are those taking the easy way out to demand Zahid's resignation and conveniently ignored his resistance to Mahathir's request to dissolve UMNO. That led to Zahid to bear the brunt of being fixed-up with 87 charges. 

Their suggested solution is for UMNO to go alone albeit with BN and slug it out in the next GE. Winning a general election need more than just enthusiasm. It needs finance, organisation, and campaign message. 

Among them have taken to Dato Seri Mohamed Hasan to be their voice. However, current Liaison Chief of UMNO Negeri Sembilan and one of the 11 BN MP who sign the SD for Muhyiddin, Dato Jalaluddin Alias bluntly said last week that UMNO will lose should it go solo. 

There will be those who see his contrarian view as political positioning within the state, but Jalaluddin reiterated the same point said by Mat Hasan. Be it to go solo or cooperation with other group, the Supreme Council will decide and it has yet to decide for GE16. 

The next general election is still three years away and there is still much work to be done. Perhaps to send a clearer message to the UMNO masses that such any decision should not be made in haste, Vice President, Dato Khaled Norden gave a similar view. 

He said over the weekend that UMNO will cease to exist had it joined up with PPBM and PN. And he advised the members to do a reality check and not to make unnecessary demands. 

Read on in Thick as a Brick HERE.