The political future of top Umno vice-president Mohd Isa Abdul Samad has been dealt a serious blow when he was slapped with a six-year suspension by the party for vote-buying.

Isa, 56, who is federal territories minister, is the highest ranking member in the ruling Umno party to have been found guilty of political corruption by the party's disciplinary board.

He was guilty of three counts of bribing delegates in his bid to win one of the three vice-president posts at the party polls last September.

Isa, who was considered a rank outsider, pulled off a major surprise to garner the highest number of votes in the hotly contested vice-president posts.

He was also found guilty of two charges of organising campaign meetings with delegates in violation of the party's code of ethics.

Isa has two weeks to go to the party's appeals committee and the supreme council to overturn the disciplinary board's decision.

If he fails he would have to step down from all party and government posts - Umno vice-president, federal territories minister and his Teluk Kemang division chief's post in Negri Sembilan.

With the suspension, he will not be able to return to active politics in Umno until 2011.

However, it is likely Isa, who is former Negri Sembilan mentri besar, will remain the parliamentary representative for Jempol.

Isa's aide also found guilty

The powerful disciplinary board, which reached a verdict less than 24 hours after it deliberated on the matter, also suspended Isa's political secretary Salim Sharif for three years for acting as his agent.

Yesterday Isa went before the board for about one hour to defend the nine charges against him - seven for vote-buying, including three for allegedly bribing delegates the morning before voting took place.

The other two charges are for holding campaign meetings, which is forbidden by the party.

The board also met with some of the 30 complainants, who were all granted immunity.

Salim said the minister was "shocked and saddened" by the decision and that he would lodge an appeal next week.

Isa, who has the distinction of being the country's longest-serving mentri besar - 22 years - came out on top in last year's race for the vice-president posts with 1,507 votes.

The other two posts went to Malacca Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam - another surprising winner - with 1,329 votes, and Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin.

The three vice-presidents traditionally form the next rank in the succession line-up after the president and deputy president.

The likely beneficiary of Isa's woes will be former Selangor mentri besar Muhammad Muhd Taib, who failed to defend his vice-president post after managing to get only 1,177 votes, 57 votes behind Muhyiddin.

His fourth placing in the vice-president race would put him next in line to fill the vacant post left by Isa.

Zaid suspended three years

Meanwhile, the board also suspended Kota Baru Umno division chief Zaid Ibrahim for three years for criticising the board's decision in issuing him a warning for his involvement in money politics.

Zaid had accused the board of acting "outside the purview of the laws in the country" during a debate in Parliament two months ago.

"They do not have recognised and proper procedures but they seem to have the power of a court to accuse people of being involved in corrupt practices and then penalise them as criminals," he told Parliament.

The Koto Baru MP, who owns one of the biggest law firms in the country, said if the government allows the disciplinary board of a political party to double as a court, this will eventually backfire on the government.

According to the Star , board chairman Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen Tengku Ismail said it was an offence for party members to "make public statements that tarnish the party's image".

Zaid was found guilty of contravening Umno's code of ethics during last year's party elections by using an agent to campaign for him but escaped with a warning. He failed to secure enough nominations to contest the vice-president post.

He had contemplated quitting politics after the warning was issued.