Malaysia’s PM Ismail Sabri Yaacob faces mounting pressure to call snap vote, as Najib and allies step up Umno faction war

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, an ally of ex-PM Najib, has sacked Tajuddin Abdul Rahman from the party’s powerful supreme council. The two men represent the main factions trying to control Umno

Opponents say they hope to quash the many corruption accusations they face in court

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Malaysian PM Ismail Sabri Yaakob. File photo: Bloomberg

Published: 8:30am, 3 Jul 2022

Political forecasters have gone into a tailspin in recent days after the leadership of Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Umno party sacked a key ally from its powerful supreme council, a sign of impatience with his dithering over when he will call a general election.

The decision by Umno President Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to remove Tajuddin Abdul Rahman – a party veteran and multi-term MP – came as a surprise to many, even after taking into account the testy relations that have been brewing between separate groups within the party.

Ahmad Zahid and Tajuddin represent two of the main factions vying for control of Umno, which fractured in 2018 after suffering its first-ever defeat at a national election amid widespread anger over rising living costs and allegations of rampant corruption under the stewardship of then-prime minister and former party president Najib Razak.

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak arrives at Kuala Lumpur High Court for the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) trial this month. Photo: dpa

Ahmad Zahid and Najib have since struck up a partnership – described derisively by critics as the ‘court cluster’ as both men face corruption trials – and the move to replace Tajuddin with Isham Jalil, a former Najib spokesman, could be seen as an attempt to further tighten their grip on the supreme council.

Opponents of the Umno president and his predecessor have accused them of pushing Ismail Sabri to call for early polls to ensure they are able to return to power as soon as possible, and enable them to quash the dozens of graft charges they currently face in court.

The court cases are also believed to be among the key issues driving the faction said to back the prime minister, something that Tajuddin, who the prime minister has named ambassador-designate to Indonesia, said out in the open on Monday.

Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. File photo: Xinhua

At a “tell-all” press conference after his removal from the supreme council, Tajuddin said Ahmad Zahid should resign as party president as ongoing corruption cases make him a liability to Umno.