Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin believes all Umno members and leaders in Terengganu are loyal to the party.

He said there could be some moves by some parties to recruit them but he believed that they knew better and would not leave Umno because they were experienced people.

NONE "I believe that they are very loyal, not only the supporters but also the leaders of Umno. They hold positions as members of the state assembly," he told reporters after chairing the meeting of the cabinet committee on tourism in Putrajaya today.

He was asked to comment on rumours that Umno assemblypersons in Terengganu were planning to leave the party to join PKR.

He said he would be meeting them in Terengganu later Thursday and "I do hope that the fasting month would be a good beginning where everybody accepts the fact that we should be together and united".

Asked whether he would meet both sides, he said: "I don't meet both sides, I meet all."

"We are working for the sake of the people because we are the ruling party in Terengganu," added the Umno deputy president.

Terengganu has 32 state seats. Umno has 23 seats and PAS eight. MCA has one seat.

Muhyiddin on MCA

Commenting on the proposed extraordinary general meeting (EGM) by the MCA, which is expected to be called before Sept 30, Muhyiddin said Umno hoped that the MCA leaders would take the necessary steps to resolve the issues that they were facing.

"Our interest is to see that the party stays intact. There will no split, and any move should facilitate the process of healing and uniting because we look at MCA as a very important partner in BN.

"So, I hope the initiatives that the leaders are taking now will facilitate the process to resolve the problem.

"The sooner they can do it, the better for us," he added.

- Bernama