Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has dismissed rumours claiming leaders from BN, Perikatan Nasional (PN), Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) were set to hold a meeting on Tuesday.
The Deputy Prime Minister said he was unaware of any such gathering and reaffirmed that BN remains committed to supporting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Unity Government until the 16th General Election (GE16).
“There is no such meeting. I have no knowledge of it,” Zahid told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Cyberjaya.
He stressed that UMNO’s position remains unchanged, pointing to the party’s General Assembly resolution to continue backing the Madani Government until the next general election.
“There is no higher decision-making body than the UMNO General Assembly, and we respect that decision. So there is no need to worry,” he said.
Speculation over the alleged meeting spread across social media, with claims that leaders from BN, PN, GPS, and GRS would hold discussions before addressing the media at 2pm. The rumours were believed to have been fuelled by the recent electoral cooperation between BN and PN for the upcoming Negeri Sembilan state election.
The speculation also drew comparisons to the political realignment in February 2020, when BN, PN, GPS, and GRS supported Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to form the federal government following the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan administration led by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Anwar’s administration currently commands the support of 151 Members of Parliament, giving the government a two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat.
The ruling coalition consists of 77 MPs from Pakatan Harapan, 30 from BN, 23 from GPS, seven from GRS, along with several MPs from other parties and independents. PN currently holds 68 parliamentary seats.
The 2022 General Election resulted in a hung Parliament before BN, GPS, and GRS agreed to support Anwar as Prime Minister, enabling the formation of the Unity Government.
