'Defending Malays is bullsh*t', Umno Supreme Council member quotes leaders at late-night meeting

At least two Umno Supreme Council members have given a glimpse of what transpired at a late-night meeting chaired by Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on Wednesday, which led to the decision to back Anwar Ibrahim for the top office despite the party's repeated stance against working with the Pakatan Harapan leader.

Dira Abu Zahar, who is also an assemblyman in Melaka, was apologetic in an Instagram post, saying she had "tried her best".

"I'm not racist. I am just anti-DAP," she wrote.

She then revealed that several Umno leaders believed to be those aligned with Zahid had rubbished an argument during the meeting for the party to defend the Malays – a decades-long battle cry for Umno.

"It is still ringing in my ears, I can still see, the voices of the Umno leaders who disparaged the interests of Malay-Muslims in Malaysia at the Supreme Council meeting yesterday. 

"'There is no need to take care of these Malays. All this is bullsh*t," she said without naming the leaders. 

Another Supreme Council member, Armand Azha, uploaded an emoji of two hands clasped alongside a Malaysian flag.

There has been almost complete silence from Umno leaders and MPs despite strong statements in the wake of Zahid's declaration of their support for Anwar as prime minister. 

The protests came to a head after a letter written by Zahid, committing the coalition's 30 MPs in support of Anwar, based on his "mandate" as BN chairman.

The letter was in conflict with BN's earlier statement that it would remain neutral in the tussle for the top office between Anwar and Perikatan Nasional chairman Muhyiddin Yassin.

At a late-night meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 22, Zahid had faced calls to step down, and had to be removed from the conference room after being accused of unilaterally committing MPs' support for Anwar. 

MPs including former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Sembrong MP Hishammuddin Hussein had previously said they were ready to be sacked for not toeing the party line. 

Anwar was sworn in as prime minister yesterday, becoming the country's 10th leader and the fourth in under three years. 

He said at his first press conference as prime minister that a motion of confidence would be tabled in December to put to rest the question of his support and legitimacy.