Several Umno division Youth wings have retracted their invitations to Mukhriz Mahathir to officiate their meetings.

According to a source, it can be confirmed that at least three wings have cancelled their invitations despite the son of former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad confirming his attendance.

"No reasons were given. When asked (for the reason), they said they had to cancel it due to unavoidable reasons," he told malaysiakini .

However, he declined to reveal which wings had cancelled the meet in order to avoid any misunderstandings or unwarranted actions.

On the same note, he said Mukhriz will officiate the meetings of at least seven other division Youth wings. On Saturday, he officiated the Masjid Tanah division wing's meeting.

During that meeting, the wing passed a resolution urging the Umno supreme council to take efforts to arrange a meeting between Mahathir and Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to end their rift.

Same fate

Meanwhile, the source said although disappointing, the cancellations did not come as a surprise.

This showed that certain quarters were trying to drag Mukhriz into the ongoing crisis between Abdullah and Mahathir, he added.

The source also said he was informed that someone from Kuala Lumpur had asked Umno state liaison committees to advise party divisions against inviting Mukriz or his father.

"Mukhriz is suffering the same fate as his father. We know that many functions involving Mahathir have been cancelled lately.

"The actions of certain quarters to view Mukhriz in this light is saddening and unreasonable because as an Umno Youth exco he is qualified and has the right to officiate the meetings," he added.

He said the 'advice' channeled from Kuala Lumpur to the state Umno committees does not reflect the words of the president and senior leaders who repeatedly claimed that Mahathir has not been barred from meeting Umno members.

"It seems that it is not only Mahathir who is prevented from meeting Umno members, even his son has become a victim," he added.