KUALA LUMPUR: The Umno extraordinary general meeting (EGM) will be held on Sunday instead of Saturday.
This is to enable Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who is also the party's vice-president, to attend the meeting.
Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said the change of date for the EGM was agreed upon by the supreme council as the prime minister is currently and will be away till May 13.
"We have distributed the invitations and so far 2,500 out of 2,666 delegates have replied to attend Umno's EGM on Sunday," he told the NSTP.
Ismail Sabri is on a work visit to Washington, United States, to attend the Asean-United States special summit starting today.
The EGM will be held at Dewan Merdeka World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur (WTCKL), followed by a double celebration for Umno's anniversary and Hari Raya AidilFitri.
Ahmad said the EGM was also to ratify the proposed constitutional amendment so that the party's election would be held within six months after the general election (GE) was held.
"The motion that was approved at the Umno general assembly 2021 in March, must be ratified in the special assembly in accordance with Clause 30 of the party's constitution.
"The relevant motion is to call for the amendment of the party constitution in relation to the election clause to be done within a suitable time by stipulating that the party election must be held within six months after each GE is held.
"This is to ensure that the entire strength of the party can be mobilised to face the GE without any threat and risk of division," he said.
Ahmad said party members should not be worried about the EGM which was held in accordance with Clause 10 of the party's constitution.
He said the Registrar of Societies (RoS) had confirmed the validity of Umno's decision to postpone the party election.
Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin will be presenting the motion for the proposed amendment on the party's election after the GE.
On April 14, the Umno supreme council decided that an EGM would be held on May 14, to amend the party's constitution for the election period.
The decision by the supreme council was made unanimously.
Meanwhile, Umno supreme council member Datuk Dr Mohd Puad Zarkashi said the amendment to the Umno constitution during the EGM this Sunday would be approved unanimously by the delegates.
He said the delegates were aware of the content of the motion because it had been mentioned and agreed on during the last Umno 2021 General Assembly.
"The motion is another step forward for Umno in making structural changes to ensure the party is a strong political organisation.
"That means Umno is more focused on winning the election, avoiding the risk of internal divisions," he said.
Commenting further, Puad said the meeting was timely because Umno and Barisan Nasional are highly committed to securing two-thirds majority in the 15th general election (GE15).
"The return of strong majority governments in Melaka and Johor is proof that a stable government is more important, compared to the bad experiences of being a small majority government.
"A strong majority government is still relevant in Malaysia. The people understand it through the support shown at Melaka and Johor state elections.
He said it was important for Umno to respond accordingly to such a scenario.
"It is important for the motion to be approved as Umno should be seen as a stable party, because it will offer a stable government in GE15," he said.