The Malaysian Insight

NAZRI Aziz has said he will remain with Umno but will give his support to Anwar Ibrahim amidst call for the Padang Rengas MP to be given the boot from the Malay party.

The Padang Rengas MP said he saw nothing wrong in supporting the PKR president who he described as a reformer.

He said there was nothing wrong with supporting Anwar as they were together in Umno before.

Nazri said he had also served on Anwar’s Umno Youth committee back when he was leading the wing.

Nazri was a staunch ally of the Port Dickson MP when he led Umno Youth.

“I support Anwar. If I am in Umno it does not mean I can’t support him. He used to be my Youth chief at one time but I will remain in Umno,” he said after the parliamentary caucus on reform and governance meeting today.

Anwar is the caucus chief.

Nazri’s comments come after his objection to the appointment of former prime minister Najib Razak as the Barisan Nasional advisory council chairman.

He said the appointment would not be good for Umno as the party lost the 14th general election under Najib.

“I think it is regressive. We (BN) lost under whom? What kind of advice can he give us?,” he was quoted as saying.

Nazri’s remarks triggered calls among some in Umno for the former tourism minister to be sacked from the party.

Since then, social media chatter indicates that PKR and Anwar would be a good bet for Nazri if he elected to leave Umno.

However, Umno secretary-general Annuar Musa said there was no need to sack Nazri as he was only airing his dissent and it was not an offence.

Anwar said there was no question of Nazri joining PKR as the Padang Rengas MP was a hardcore supporter of the Malay-nationalist party.

“He never said he wanted to join PKR. He had never discussed that with us. I have also never invited anyone,” he said when met after the caucus meeting. – July 16, 2019.