SHAH ALAM - There has never been anyone contesting under Barisan Nasional's (BN) ticket and attacking his own party during the general election (GE), this is called betrayal, says Umno Supreme Council member Datuk Lokman Noor Adam.
Referring to Khairy Jamaluddin, he said the former's action should be classified as a betrayal to the party, and that caused his dismissal from the party.
Lokman described Umno former vice president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein as a traitor too, as he was suspended for six years.
"Some parties attempted to spin the story by stating Khairy and Hishammuddin did not agree with the Umno president, hence why action was taken; that is out of the question.
"He (Khairy) was a traitor, we will not deny it. Those contesting under BN’s ticket wouldn’t attack their own party; that is a traitorous action.
"The same could be said for Hishammuddin; I agree that even though there was a sworn declaration signed, he gave the mandate to the party chief, as a chief, he could side with any party; he could negotiate and decide to provide 30 MPs; and it was the same for choosing who to become prime minister," he said.
Lokman was one of the panellists on Sinar Wacana series 387 "Umno Election: Party Cleaning Process?" which aired live on Sinar Harian’s Facebook on Tuesday.
The Umno cleanse witnessed the sacking of former Rembau MP effective immediately.
Several Umno leaders were suspended for six years, including Hishammuddin and former information chief Shahril Sufian Hamdan.