The disciplinary action taken by Umno against several party leaders, including Kamarudin Mohd Nor, the former Pasir Putih division head in Kelantan, will affect the party's chances of capturing more seats in the next general elections.

Rozali Isohak, a member of Kelantan Umno information committee, told malaysiakini that party unity has been a key problem hindering Umno's quest to win more seats in the PAS-held state.

Rozali said Kamarudin was one of the more influential Umno leaders in Kelantan. As such, disciplinary action taken against him and others will affect unity in their respective divisions.

Last week, the Umno disciplinary committee found 13 Umno members guilty of breaching party ethics during the last divisional elections.

As of Sept 14, the 13 will not be eligible for election or appointment to any party posts for three years in accordance with the party constitution.

At present, the Barisan Nasional has only two out of the 41 state seats in Kelantan state assembly.

The two state seats are Galas and Paloh, while BN's sole parliamentary seat is Gua Musang, represented by former Semangat 46 leader Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.

Following the decision to remove Kamarudin from his post, state Umno liaison chief Mustapha Mohamad has taken over the leadership of the Pasir Putih division.

'Negative impact'

Rozali said DAP's decision to leave the opposition Barisan Alternatif coalition should have put Umno Kelantan "in a better position" to restore its influence and win more seats in the coming general elections, scheduled to be held by 2004.

However, he said the disciplinary action taken against several state Umno leaders has impacted negatively on the party.

Rozali, however, stressed that he was not against the decision taken by the disciplinary committee headed by Tengku Ahmad Rithaudeen as it was important to weed out money politics from within Umno.

"But in Kelantan, the action has brought a negative effect on Umno because those involved are influential in their respective divisions," he lamented.