Across debates and speeches, delegates repeatedly returned to the topic of DAP, even as senior leaders sought to temper fears and refocus the party’s message on Malay unity rather than antagonism.
Akmal’s announcement that he would step down from his Melaka executive council post to focus on taking on DAP electrified the hall and reinforced the strong anti-DAP mood among grassroots members.
An Umno leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described Akmal’s resignation as “very tactical”. “It will give him a freer hand to attack anyone, especially DAP,” the leader said, adding that delegates were “very keen” on the broader push to consolidate Malay support under Umno.
The same leader acknowledged, however, that Umno no longer enjoyed an uncontested claim to Malay representation.
“Party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi tried to encourage everybody with his ‘rumah besar’ message. We have said all this while that Umno represents the majority of Malays, but we lost that legitimacy to Bersatu and PAS. Malays have options other than Umno,” the leader said.
In his address on Friday, Zahid rejected the idea of a broader “big tent” for Malay parties, pushing instead the concept of Umno as a permanent “rumah besar”, or “Malay house” for the community at large. He said Umno could serve as a platform to unite the community and help them face current challenges, including those political in nature.
Tempering anti-DAP fears
The intense focus on DAP drew a measured response from some of the party’s top leaders, including vice-president Johari Ghani, who dismissed the party’s portrayal as Umno’s arch-enemy.
“Why should we fear DAP? There is no reason to fear them. We never feared Gerakan, we never feared MCA, we never feared any non-Malay party – so why fear DAP?” he said.
Johari said Umno’s real concern should be its failure to unite the Malay community, not the rise of any single party. He also said Zahid’s “Malay house” concept could be expanded, but participation could not be forced.
“If PAS doesn’t want to be part of the ‘house’, so be it. We cannot force them,” he said, recalling the collapse of Muafakat Nasional despite earlier efforts to foster Malay unity.
Deputy president Mohamad Hasan accused unnamed parties of deliberately provoking Umno to quit the unity government, adding that Umno should not be intimidated. “Their frustration (with Umno) is even greater since they lost everything in Sabah,” he said, in remarks widely seen as a jab at DAP, which failed to win any seat in the recent Sabah election.
“When the Malays were united, we were able to push the British out. I am not afraid of DAP and I don’t want Umno members to be afraid of DAP. We want the Malay agenda to continue,” he said.
Party leaders also sought to project stability within the unity government. Secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said Umno had yet to decide whether it would cooperate with Pakatan Harapan in the next general election, stressing that Umno’s priority was strengthening the current government and fulfilling its responsibility to the people.
While leaders sought to soften tensions, the assembly underscored how deeply anti-DAP sentiment now runs within Umno’s ranks, which the party leadership must balance against its calls for unity, pragmatism and political survival.