Johor DAP vice-president Sheikh Umar Bagharib Ali said Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi should resign from the cabinet instead of Transport Minister Anthony Loke, and called on Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to sack Zahid.

In a Facebook statement, Sheikh Umar said this was because Zahid had embarrassed Anwar at the recently concluded Umno general assembly, despite being his second-in-command.

“He questioned government policies. He questioned Budi95. Yet he is in the same cabinet. He made those decisions together.

“While many countries around the world respect Anwar’s leadership, Zahid belittled and made a fool of him.

“For me, Zahid should have resigned. Not Loke,” Sheikh Umar added.

He further said Anwar could remove Zahid and replace him with another Umno leader, suggesting Defence Minister Khaled Nordin or Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Johari Abdul Ghani.

“They are more committed to safeguarding the good name of the government and the country,” Sheikh Umar (below) said.

Last night, Loke said he will resign from the cabinet over the conditional pardon granted to former premier Najib Abdul Razak, but other DAP cabinet members will remain in the government.

The DAP secretary-general explained that this was to ensure that the Anwar-led government remains stable.

Open dare

During the Umno AGM on Sept 12, Zahid openly challenged the Pakatan Harapan-led coalition government to boot Umno from Putrajaya and call for snap polls.

READ MORE: Zahid dares Harapan to kick Umno out of Putrajaya, dissolve Parliament

In his winding-up speech, the BN chairperson slammed Harapan supporters who had urged Umno to exit the government and reminded them that the coalition would not be in Putrajaya without support from his coalition.

Zahid said the other parties in the coalition government only joined after BN helped Harapan secure the required majority in 2022.

If Harapan were to oust BN, the Umno president said the coalition would lose its initial foundation and thus should return the mandate to the rakyat.

“To the ‘ceplos’, this government is here because of Umno. The prime minister (Anwar) could become the premier because of Umno's support.

“You think because now you have (the support of) 153 MPs... I am not angry, I am just feeling ‘hot’,” he told the thousands of Umno delegates.

“Ceplos” is a derogatory Malay term used by rivals to describe Harapan sycophants.

READ MORE: Zahid denies that Anwar was ever his 'teacher'

Zahid further reminded Anwar that three of his MPs - Rafizi Ramli, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, and Wong Chen - have since quit PKR and vacated their Dewan Rakyat seats.

At a press conference later, Zahid said his challenge did not mean BN would table a no-confidence motion against Anwar.

Despite Umno and Harapan being partners in the federal unity government, the two parties have continued to face political competition at the state level.

In Negeri Sembilan, Umno-led BN and PAS-led Perikatan Nasional cooperated in the state election, while in Johor, PAS urged its supporters to back BN in seats where PN was not contesting.