Last-minute bid to stop Umno meet

As the countdown for Umno's 59th general assembly begins later this evening, two division leaders are seeking a last-minute intervention from the Registrar of Societies (RoS) to stop the meeting and elections.

Umno Muar division member Kadar Shah Sulaiman Ninam Shah and former Umno Youth exco member Mazlan Haron said the reason for their action is because they felt the practice of money politics in the Umno contests for posts as acknowledged by the party's disciplinary committee is worrying.

They also felt the RoS as the administrator and the body overlooking the societies should step in and stop the problem before it spreads to other parties, associations and societies.

"We are doing this to save the party," Kadar Shah Shah said today.

Kadar Shah, 63, said RoS should not be practising double standards just because Umno is considered the ruling party.

He said if this problem is not resolved within Umno, it would become a cancer and spread to other political parties and associations.

"There should not be two sets of rules or standards practised by the RoS. Just because Umno is the ruling party, the body decides not to take action on it despite wide media reports on corruption," he said when contacted by Malaysiakini today.

"This is not the right step forward for Malaysia and especially Umno. RoS should enforce the rules regardless of whether the party is influential or not. It must not treat the money politics problem within Umno lightly."

Kadar Shah, who is the son of the late former Umno permanent chairperson Sulaiman Ninam Shah and former Umno Youth exco member Mazlan Haron (pic) also went to the RoS in Putrajaya to lodge a complaint on the rampant occurance of money politics in Umno.

They met with deputy registrar Marzuki Zainuddin at 2.30pm and told him to force Umno to abolish the quota system in Umno elections.

If the RoS failed to take any action, the duo said they will take legal action to force Umno to remove the quota system.

They also gave documentary evidence of money politics to the RoS.

Mazlan told reporters after the 30-minute meeting with Marzuki that they felt the quota system was the source of the problems in money politics in the party.

That is why this (quota system) should stop as it is against the Societies Act, he said.

"The quota system has resulted in money politics to continue and become a problem to the party," said Mazlan after meeting with the RoS.

Asked on why they were complaining to the RoS now and not earlier, Mazlan said that during president Dr Mahathir Mohamad's time Umno had adopted the quota system to prevent any untoward challenges towards the presidency.

He said although current Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had opposed the quota system then, he had not decided to remove it totally.

"Our actions today come at the opportune time as with the incoming new president Najib Abdul Razak and the batch of new aspiring leaders like Muhyiddin Yassin and Rais Yatim, we are hopeful that the quota system would be abolished. We are giving the chance for RoS and new party leadership to make the necessary changes.

"If the RoS fails to rectify the problem and Umno also decide not to abolish the quota system, we will take the legal action to force the abolishment of the quota system which is the source of money politics," he said.

Mazlan said he and Kadar would give RoS and Umno time to consider their views as it would help rid the party of the problems of money politics. - Malaysiakini. To continue read here .