Politically Frank: Zahidi brands Zahid the 'Father of Elimination'

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Zahid Hamidi - BERNAMA
SHAH ALAM - In an attack on Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's grip over the party leadership, former Umno supreme council member Datuk Zahidi Zainul Abidin today claimed the Deputy Prime Minister would go to the extent of eliminating anyone who refused to support him.

Speaking on Sinar Daily's Politically Frank segment, Zahidi said this was Zahid's his own way of administrating the party.

"He likes to take action on his party members that do not support him," Zahidi said.

Following Umno’s decision to not put up its top two posts for contest in its next general assembly and then purge a number of its prominent figures, Sinar Daily also sought Zahidi's insight into the feeling among voters towards Umno ahead of the upcoming state elections.

"We will see what's the result. First, for example, we don't like what he's doing. Maybe some of the people like what he is doing," the Padang Besar Member of Parliament said. "From what we see right now, the comment amongst the people, the voters, they don't like Umno and the way that Zahid Hamidi takes action towards their members," he added.

"We had Umno presidents before who were the Father of Development, Father of Modernisation, Father of Unity, but now, we have an Umno president who is the Father of Elimination.”

Last November, Umno confirmed that the membership of four individuals had been dropped after they were found to have run for an opponent party in the 15th General Election (GE15).

Umno Secretary-General Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said the four members were Zahidi who was running as an independent candidate for Padang Besar parliamentary seat, Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim (Arau Parliament), Datuk Seri Dr Ismail Abd Muttalib (Maran) and Datuk Azhar Ahmad for the Kuala Perlis State Assembly seat.

On Jan 27, former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar was sacked from Umno for being vocal against the party's leadership and for claiming that there were ghost voters recruited to contribute votes to the no-contest motion for the party's top two positions.

A number of other Umno leaders and prominent figures were also suspended from the party such as Sembrong member of parliament Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and former Umno Information chief Shahril Hamdan.