DAP's Loke denies meeting Umno leaders to discuss collaboration
DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke has refuted an allegation by Umno Ketereh MP Annuar Musa that he (Loke) had met with Umno leaders to discuss the possibility of a political partnership.
“I never met any Umno leader to discuss this issue (efforts to form a new government) and I have never said anything (about this),” he said briefly when doorstepped after a Pakatan Harapan presidential council meeting today.
DAP organising secretary Anthony Loke has refuted an allegation by Umno Ketereh MP Annuar Musa that he (Loke) had met with Umno leaders to discuss the possibility of a political partnership.
“I never met any Umno leader to discuss this issue (efforts to form a new government) and I have never said anything (about this),” he said briefly when doorstepped after a Pakatan Harapan presidential council meeting today.
Pressed if Annuar had lied about the allegation, the Seremban MP declined to comment further.
“I have never said anything to Umno leaders,” Loke repeated.
This evening’s presidential council meeting was held at the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya.
Annuar repeated his allegation yesterday during an interview with TV Pertiwi.
The recently fired BN secretary-general declined to reveal the identities of the alleged Umno leaders involved but insisted that the meeting had taken place without the agreement of the party as a whole.
The leaders, Annuar claimed, included Umno supreme council members.
The allegation comes amidst escalating tensions between Perikatan Nasional allies Umno and Bersatu.
Umno grassroots have called for ties with the Umno splinter party to be severed and for GE15 to be called soon.
Two Umno MPs - Nazri Aziz (Padang Rengas) and Ahmad Jazlan Yaakub (Machang) - have already withdrawn their support for the Bersatu-led government.
This has caused PN to lose its majority in the Dewan Rakyat, calling its legitimacy into question.
According to Nazri, more party lawmakers are expected to make similar announcements.
The Yang Di-Pertuan Agong declared a national emergency this morning, effective from yesterday until Aug 1, 2021.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin explained that this meant government business would continue as usual but parliament sessions and elections would be suspended until the emergency is lifted.
