KUALA LUMPUR: As Malaysians prepare to vote in the 15th General Election tomorrow, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has sent a final plea urging people to vote for Barisan Nasional (BN) to "save Umno from any attempt to ban it".
Zahid, who is Umno president and BN chairman, bluntly said "one vote for (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia president Tan Sri) Muhyiddin Yassin and (Parti Pejuang Tanah Air chairman Tun Dr) Mahathir Mohamad and their allies is one vote for the attempt to ban Umno after the election".
"(We) need to ensure BN wins big this election. BN's victory this time will save Umno from an attempt to dissolve it for the second time since 2018 (when BN lost GE14)," he said in a post on his official Facebook page.
He claimed that after Bersatu became part of the government under the PH administration, one of the key issues Muhyiddin and Mahathir had focused on was to ban Umno.
He said the aim was to eradicate the influence of the grassroots and the position of the Malay-based party so that Bersatu could take over and dominate the Malay vote.
He claimed that Mahathir had approached him with a request to dissolve Umno and bring all its members and members of parliament into Bersatu.
"Muhyiddin has a grudge against Umno. When I refused the request, I was subjected to selective prosecution.
"I was humiliated, belittled and labelled as part of the 'court cluster' repeatedly.
"Some used the ugly accusations not only to discredit me, but also to discredit Umno.
"When I was found not guilty of 40 charges of graft by the High Court, neither of them apologised.
"Some who have a bad heart and attitude continue to humiliate my family and hurt my political career.
"What is strange is that leaders like Lim Guan Eng and Syed Saddiq (Syed Abdul Rahman) are also facing court cases and they are not labelled as a 'court cluster'."
Zahid said as long as Muhyiddin and Mahathir are in Perikatan Nasional, Gerakan Tanah Air or PH, Umno is in great danger.
He urged members of the public to support BN to uphold the truth and sovereignty of the law.
"We need to aim for a fair national system and get rid of selective prosecution.
"Remember! Muhyiddin said Umno will be swept away by Sungai Muar. Don't let Umno be disparaged and remain silent.
"Save Umno, vote for BN to defend Umno's dignity from being humiliated, boxed in and belittled by BN's enemies!"
