Silam Umno division head, Mohd Yusof Apdal said the opening of the new branches raised the number to 486 and further strengthened Umno’s position in Silam and by extension, Sabah.

It also showed that the people still supported Umno and the BN strongly.

“The additional branches are from the Lahad Datu state constituency which recorded an additional eight branches to 257 with four new branches each for Tungku (132) and Kunak (97),” he told reporters here today.

Meanwhile, he said the opening of the branches dispelled the opposition’s recent claim that many Umno members had left the party.

“An opposition party in Sabah acted unrealistically by issuing a statement on the number of Umno members joining them, although in actual fact the claim was untrue and Umno still had many applications for the formation of new branches,” he added.

Yusof, who is the State Assemblyman for Lahad Datu, said the opposition’s tendency to disseminate false information was aimed a sensationalising the political situation there and popularising its newly formed party.