Umno supreme council member Reezal Merican Naina Merican said deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin's scathing speech last night does not indicate that the party is in turmoil.

As the deputy president, Reezal said, Muhyiddin is entitled to his opinions and it should not be viewed as a clash of views between him and party president Najib Abdul Razak.

"I truly hope that we don't rush to the conclusion that Muhyiddin's 'criticisms and views' are a sign of internal problems (in Umno).

"I also hope that we take heed of Muhyiddin's criticism while making a commitment and renewed efforts to strengthen the people's trust in us," he added in a press statement.

Reezal said he was disappointed with the interpretation of Muhyiddin's comments by some news portals and new media platforms.

Former Deputy Higher Education Minister Saifuddin Abdullah ( photo ) who is also a former Umno Supreme Council member, said if even without the issues of 1MDB and GST, BN might still lose.

However Umno would still win seats it contested as in as general elections, Umno is favoured to draw the Malay votes.

"However, now with the 1MDB and GST issues, the areas which are traditionally Umno strongholds, could also lose.

"The 1MDB issue affects Umno badly in three ways - namely the issue itself, the lack of concrete answers, and efforts to keep the truth from the public," he warned in a WhatsApp posting.

'Umno would lose'

At the closing ceremony of the Cheras Umno division annual general meeting last night, Muhyiddin warned that if the next general election was held soon, Umno would lose due to negative public perception created by the 1MDB controversy.

Referring to 1MDB as the " sovereign debt fund ", Muhyiddin said he had advised Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak many times on the matter, but his advice was ignored.

Muhyiddin had also voiced his support for the release of the National Audit Department's interim report on its audit of 1MDB's books.

Reezal said he supported the release of the report, which has thus far been restricted to members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

"Perhaps, what was suggested by Muhyiddin can help fill the information void (on the 1MDB controversy). I support (the proposal) for the interim report to be made public in order for it to be evaluated by the public.

"We can't wait too long to fulfil the hopes and wishes of the people. They want to be informed and it should be done through the interim report," Reezal said.

He said by releasing the report, it would be difficult for detractors to "spin" the issue.

Meanwhile, Umno supreme council member Irmohizam Ibrahim expressed reservations on Muhyiddin's suggestion, on grounds that PAC was still investigating the matter.

"It is not fair if it is exposed when investigations are ongoing," Irmohizam said.

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