KUALA LUMPUR, June 28- Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor today said the party’s top posts are open for contest in the party polls expected to take place at year-end.
This despite calls for the posts of president and deputy president to remain uncontested.
“Anybody who wants to contest for the top posts — from the presidency right down to the supreme council — can register themselves as a full candidate,” Tengku Adnan told reporters on the sidelines of the Dewan Rakyat sitting, here yesterday.
Under the new format, he said between 148,000 and 150,000 Umno members at the grassroots from 199 divisions would cast their votes for the prospective candidates.
On the voting mechanism, Tengku Adnan said it would be counted as one vote for each division.
“For example, if (Prime Minister and Umno president) Datuk Seri Najib Razak has a challenger for the presidency, they will have to contest in every division because each has one vote eventhough each division has a different number of delegates,” he said.
He said that Umno briefings on the new format to the respective divisions would end tomorrow, with Umno Sabah being the last.
This will be the first time that Umno would be using the new mechanism following amendments to its constitution in 2009.
Previously, only a set number of delegates were allowed to vote for the party’s leadership posts.
– BERNAMA
