The party’s information chief, Annuar Musa, said today that Umno lacked the necessary rules to stop its members from attending the rally.
“We are not stopping them. Let’s be frank here, most Umno members are not happy with Bersih and some, of course, want to join the Red Shirts. But that is on a personal level and not on an organisational level.
“Tell me how can Umno stop its members if they want to go? If the police cannot stop them, you expect Umno to do so?” Annuar told reporters outside the Dewan Rakyat today.
“For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. If you go to the streets and start shouting, you must expect a reaction. Don’t expect people to keep quiet,” he said.
He said the party only required that members who wished to attend the rally abide by the law.
“Umno will not support anything that is against the law. Simple as that.”
Annuar had previously said it was wrong to say that Umno was the mastermind of the Red Shirts movement, which attracted media attention for its aggressive behaviour towards Bersih 2.0 supporters.
He said it was also unfair to blame the party because of the actions of a few.
The Bersih 5 rally will be held on Saturday in the streets of Kuala Lumpur, with supporters beginning their march at Masjid Jamek.