PETALING JAYA: Datuk Lokman Noor Adam (pix) found himself the object of mockery after suggesting Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak be the de facto leader and opposition leader.
Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin described the proposal put forward by Lokaman as fake news.
“Do not spread fake news. No one will propose a dumb suggestion such as this. I am confident that @LokmanAdam too will not be dumb like this. Eh,“ he tweeted today.
Lokman had suggested that the party appoint Najib as the de facto leader styled after Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad in PPBM and opposition leader after Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced his decision to go on leave.
He said the appointment was crucial to ensure Umno’s stability as more than half of Umno members who voted for Ahmad Zahid to be president would not accept deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan’s leadership.
“In such a critical situation, Umno needs the services of an experienced leader (Najib) who is respected by BN MPs who have not jumped and those who have jumped (to other parties),“ he said in a statement.
Ahmad Zahid had announced his decision to take ‘garden leave’ as Umno president late on Tuesday night after pressure mounted for him to resign following an exodus of Umno elected representatives, leaders and party members from the party.
Senior party leaders such as Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Youth chief Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki and Khairy had called on Zahid to either step aside or to take leave from his post.
The six Umno MPs who resigned from the party last Friday had also called for Ahmad Zahid’s resignation as he had failed to establish a clear direction for the party in the current scenario.
Ahmad Zahid is currently facing a total of 46 charges – 11 counts of CBT involving RM20,833,733.69, eight graft charges amounting to RM21,250,000 and 27 money laundering charges amounting to RM72,063,618.15.
