The Umno AGM kicked off this evening with deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin disparaging arch-rival PAS as a mere minnow in Pakatan Rakyat which has been forced to compromise its principles.

Opening the general assembly of the party's Puteri, Youth and Wanita wings, Muhyiddin said Umno’s steadfast principles have stood the test of time and that the party has maintained its dominant role in BN.

NONE Muhyiddin’s surgical strike on PAS’ leadership and Islamic credentials likely stems from the fact that Umno’s electoral casualties in 2008 - mostly in the northern states of the peninsula - had come at the hands of PAS.

Providing a reality check, Muhyiddin pointed out that throughout its history, PAS had only contested a meagre number out the total parliamentary seats up for grabs in the general election.

“The irony is, even if PAS won all the seats it contested, PAS still cannot form the government to uphold the Islamic state that it professes. What more, even with PAS’ best ever performance in 1999, it has only won 26 seats,” he told delegates at the PWTC in Kuala Lumpur tonight.

He further pointed out that PAS had only once won all the seats it contested - when it was with BN in the 1974 general election - but has lost a majority of seats it contested when it was not with BN.

This reality, Muhyiddin said, means that PAS can never uphold Islam on its own and that it is impossible the “racist and chauvinistic” DAP and the “destroyer” PKR would aid the Islamic party in that endeavour.

‘Electoral history proves Umno stronger’

He also mocked PAS delegates who at its recently concluded muktamar called for its president Abdul Hadi Awang to be made prime minister if Pakatan wins, stating that the party does not have enough seats for a dominant position.

NONE Muhiyddin, who is also deputy prime minister, appeared to be capitalising on the anxiety of PAS’ grassroots about the cooperation with Pakatan which came to the fore during the muktamar.

In contrast, Muhyiddin said, Umno had throughout its electoral history in this country, through the number of seats it can contest and win, ensured that it becomes the core in the government.

“With this position, Umno is able to execute policies according to the party’s struggle and based on consensus with other BN component parties,” he said.

Even before Pakatan captured federal power, Muhyiddin said, PAS had already been subjugated to become a minor partner, citing its exclusion from the Penang government and the ouster of former Selangor PAS commissioner Hasan Ali from the Selangor government.

Muhyiddin then hammered the last nail into the rival coalition’s Islamic credentials, accusing it of being infiltrated by deviant culture such as the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual movement, based on opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s sympathetic comments about the community; as well as PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar’s statement which he said advocates apostasy among Muslims.

‘Fake democratic credentials’

He then moved on to rip Pakatan’s democratic credentials, zooming in on PKR’s troubled party polls in 2010.

NONE Noting Anwar’s attempt to bring in international observers for the upcoming general election, Muhyiddin remarked: “It would be better for the opposition leader to invite foreign representative to witness PKR’s election. We would like to see what their comments would be.

“Was PKR’s election clean? Was it free? Was it fair? Is PKR democratic when he appoints himself as supremo without going through the electoral process?

“This only happens in a dictatorial party, not a democratic party,” he said, dubbing PKR as Parti Keluarga dan Rakan-Rakan (Party of Family and Friends).

More than half, or 33 of 62 paragraphs, of Muhyiddin’s speech was targeted at Pakatan.

Muhyiddin also turned the tables on Pakatan, claiming that it was the culprit in fanning racial sentiments.

Instead, Muhyiddin said Umno is committed to defending the Malays while ensuring just distribution for all races.

“In the 66 years that Umno has struggled for the Malays and Islam, Umno has never victimised any other race. This is Umno’s justice.

“Umno does not need to feel sinful or guilty for being on our platform of struggle."

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