KOTA BHARU - The former Selangor Umno Liaison Committee chairman Tan Sri Noh Omar said that the party would continue to be an 'outsider' if Pakatan Harapan (PH) only gave the party a small number of seats for the upcoming state election.
Noh said the situation seems to further strengthen PH's grip on Selangor to govern the state if they are given the mandate again.
"If Umno only gets a few seats, then the winners will be PH, and Umno will only stay as an outsider.
"I believe many department heads work hard day and night but end up having to give up their seats to others," he said during his Sembang Santai (casual chat) programme during Kelantan Maju Rakyat Sejahtera Carnival at Dataran Warisan Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium, here, last night.
Noh said, as a former Umno leader, that giving Umno only a small number of seats in Selangor can be considered as bringing down the dignity of the country's oldest party.
He said Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) do not have the need to ride on other parties if they really want to take over the state again.
"There is no need for Umno and BN to be afraid of competing against other parties that form the Unity Government in the next state election.
"This is because the party had once experienced a similar situation with Pas in Muafakat Nasional (MN) before. When Pas and BN were together in MN before, BN was not afraid of standing up against Pas in Melaka and, likewise, in Johor state polls.
"Why should the party be afraid of competing with PH in the next election? Let that happen, just like before, to restore the image of Umno and BN," he said.
Sinar previously reported that BN was expected to contest at least 14 out of the 56 seats in the impending Selangor state election.