Several Umno leaders today said there is an urgent need for the Umno supreme council to clarify the status of Puteri Umno members and whether they are eligible to vote at branch levels during the upcoming party elections.

This follows a statement by Umno vice-president Muhyiddin Yassin recently that all Puteri Umno members should register as Umno members to be eligible to participate in the branch elections.

Perlis Umno information chief Abu Bakar Ismail, when contacted, said Puteri Umno members aged 18 and above should be allowed to participate in both the branch elections and Wanita Umno elections.

According to partys constitution, Puteri Umno members comprise those aged between 16 and 35 years.

Those over the age of 18, be they in Puteri or Wanita Umno, are eligible to vote and be elected to hold party posts, he said.

An Umno supreme council member, who wished to remain anonymous, said all Puteri Umno members are also registered as Umno members and as such are eligible to take part in the branch elections.

However, he added, Puteri Umno members are not eligible to participate in the Wanita Umno elections.

Kangar goes ahead

Asked to comment on a report in an English daily today that some 70 percent of Puteri Umno members have yet to register as Umno members, he said the report was inaccurate because those registered with Puteri Umno were Umno members as well.

It is not true. Just look at Pemuda Umno. Although those aged below 40 years are considered as Pemuda Umno members, they are registered as Umno members as well, he said.

The dailys report also said that about 87,000 women below the age of 35 have applied to become Puteri Umno members since its inception in August last year but to date only 39,000 applications have been processed.

In a related development, Kangar Wanita Umno said that all Puteri Umno members in the Kangar division would be allowed to take part in both the branch and Wanita wing elections.

Kangar Wanita Umno chief Hazihani Datuk Ali said this was because all Puteri Umno members in the division were registered as Umno members before Dec 31 last year.

Hazihani, who is also state assemblyperson for Sena, also revealed that a Puteri Umno member had recently been elected as branch Wanita Umno chief in the Kangar division.