Umno vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today told Selangor Umno members to ignore a certain former Umno member, whom he said is still meddling with party matters despite calling it quits.

Not mentioning names but making obvious reference to Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Zahid said the same person who is on a mission to unseat Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has done the same to third PM Hussein Onn and fifth PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Only this time, Zahid said, the “snake” will not get a third bite from the Umno apple.

“A snake will only sting once. God willing, the third bite will not have its sting,” he said in his speech while opening the Selangor Umno branch annual general meeting today.

He told about 4,000 Selangor Umno grassroots leaders today that this person who just quit Umno is acting like a husband who just divorced his wife but cannot get over her.

“Maybe he felt that no one cared (for him) anymore in Umno (and) when he left, he wrote a letter to Umno branch leaders to join his movement,” he said.

Speaking in parables, he said this person is like an “old book”, which we continue to respect by putting in a high spot on the shelf but no longer read because it tells an “old tale”.

“We want to move forward, we leave that as part of history, history (which led to Umno veep) Hishammuddin Hussein’s father to leave his post."

Hishamuddin, who is Hussein Onn’s son, was also present.

He ate the poison

Zahid added Umno grassroots only want the country’s institutions to be preserved, as does this former Umno man.

He further rubbished this person by saying that it was he led to the party’s de-registration, following a party election which split the party into Team A and Team B.

In 1987, Umno was de-registered by the Registrar of Societies, after it found evidence of vote rigging in favour of Mahathir. The party was re-registered as Umno Baru, but is still generally referred to as Umno.

“I'm not mentioning names, siapa makan cili akan terasa pedas ,” he said, using a Malay proverb which generally means the person in the wrong will know when he is called out.

“Don't disturb the Umno leadership. As long as we are in Umno, God willing, we will continue fighting the Umno way,” he said.

Asked by reporters later, Zahid continued to speak in tongues by saying this person is trying to destroy the party.

“That's what he's trying to do. He has consumed the poison he once spread to destroy Umno,” he said.

In his open letter to Umno branch leaders last Friday, Mahathir called on those who still hold true Umno’s original struggle to help him oust Najib from power.

Mahathir said they can no longer wait until the 14th general election because by that time Umno led by Najib would certainly lose and once lost, it can never again be re-built.

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