KUALA LUMPUR: Penang Umno has confirmed that one of its members, who was caught on video urging others to support Perikatan Nasional (PN) during the Sungai Bakap by-election, has been automatically sacked from the party.
State Umno liaison committee deputy chairman Datuk Dr Shaik Hussein Mydin confirmed the matter when contacted on Monday.
"He will be automatically sacked from the party for going against the party's decision," he told the New Straits Times.
Based on the clip, Shaik Hussein also accused the opposition of manipulating the man in an attempt to sway voters to support the PN candidate contesting in the by-election, which concluded on Saturday.
He claimed that the party member appeared to be reading from a script at one point in the clip.
"The Sungai Bakap by-election is a wake-up call for all parties in the Pakatan Harapan - Barisan Nasional coalition," he said.
In the July 6 by-election, PN retained the seat after Abidin Ismail of Pas obtained a majority of 4,267 votes in a straight fight against Pakatan Harapan's Dr Joohari Ariffin.
Abidin won the seat after he polled 14,489 votes while Joohari Ariffin received 10,222 votes.