Sources Umno Lighting Fire Under Ismail Sabri S Feet To Call Ge15 Now After Cabinet Reshuffle Shelved

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Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) are ready for a general election (GE) to be held this year after talks of a Cabinet reshuffle to consolidate Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s position fizzled out, according to coalition sources.
(MMO) – The sources, who wished to remain anonymous, told Malay Mail the BN Convention held earlier this week showed that the component parties are prepared for an election campaign with the ultimate goal of regaining a parliamentary supermajority.
“Right now, the consensus of the top leadership of the party is that GE15 should be held sooner rather than next year.
“As Datuk Seri Najib [Razak] said, there would be dire consequences if we delay the GE15 as other parties will have time to strengthen themselves,” said one of the sources, referring to the former Umno president’s speech at the event.
Disgraced former prime minister Najib, in his speech as the BN advisory board chairman, highlighted the potential risks of delaying the election, warning that it could lead to another loss for the coalition that was voted out in 2018.
Ismail Sabri has indicated a reluctance to call for an early general election, saying the current economic condition in Malaysia meant it was a poor time to hold a general election.
He told Nikkei Asia in an interview published earlier week that rising costs in food and other living expenses were among the reasons to push back the election, which only need to be called by September next year.
At the BN convention, Najib also said Umno’s top five leaders should help Ismail Sabri to make the right decision on when the GE15 should be called.
“Right now, Ismail Sabri is beholden to the party and BN which very well want the election to be held soon,” another source told Malay Mail.
The “Umno top five” include president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, his deputy Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, and vice-presidents Ismail Sabri himself, Datuk Mahdzir Khalid and Datuk Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
Zahid in his speech roused thousands of the delegates present when he asked whether they are ready for the general election to be called soon. Most of the crowd in the World Trade Centre stood up and roared their approval.
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