PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has dismissed claims from a former Umno leader that he is attempting to improve his image by revealing that certain parties are persuading Barisan Nasional (BN) to withdraw from the unity government.
The BN chairman responded by saying that Shahril Hamdan, the former Umno information chief who alleged Zahid was creating a narrative to portray himself as a hero, was "no longer relevant."
"He (Shahril Hamdan) is no longer relevant," Zahid said briefly to reporters after attending the Rural and Regional Development Ministry's monthly assembly and Innovation Day celebration today.
On Saturday, Free Malaysia Today reported that Shahril, in his Keluar Sekejap podcast, suggested that Zahid's claim of attempts to persuade BN to leave the unity government, followed by his response, was a strategy to improve his image.
He said that building a narrative to make Zahid appeared as a hero was one of his strengths.
On Nov 24, Zahid made a stunning revelation about attempts to persuade BN to pull out of the unity government and form a new one, with the offer of the Prime Minister's position in return.
However, Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, did not identify the parties behind these attempts.
Following Zahid's disclosure, Datuk Seri Dr Shahidan Kassim, the Arau member of Parliament, admitted to publicly inviting BN to join Perikatan Nasional (PN) in forming a new federal government.
Shahidan said that his actions were no longer secret, as he had openly discussed the matter during speeches at political events.
However, he denied ever having a one-on-one meeting with Zahid.
In response to these developments, PN chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said that no PN representative had been given the mandate to discuss forming a new government with BN.
Bersatu deputy president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin also downplayed the issue, calling the meeting between the two a casual discussion between "two old friends."