“Jamal is a wanted fugitive, how on earth can he contest the youth post?,” he asked, referring to the warrant of arrest which had been issued against Jamal after he vanished from his hospital bed hours after being charged on May 25.
On June 3, Jamal, 48, offered himself as a candidate for Youth chief in the upcoming Umno polls. Jamal said in a Facebook post that he wanted to help rebuild the spirit of Umno members.
However, Tariq told FMT that a younger and more qualified Umno member should be running for the position.
“Why is a 48-year-old contesting the youth post? He’s considered a retired youth to me. I know Jamal is a very active member but if Umno wishes to rebrand and revamp, they should really stop being a circus,” he said.
He said the fact that Jamal was eligible to contest the youth position despite his age and his status as a fugitive showed that the Umno election was a sham.
Tariq feels Jamal should deal with his warrant of arrest instead of wanting to become a hero for a sinking ship. Furthermore, he said, he had not heard of anyone running in absentia.
Shahril Hamdan, who is eyeing the post of vice-chief in the youth wing, said it was best left to the delegates to choose who would be the best candidate to represent them as their youth chief.
An Umno supreme council member who did not want to be identified said Umno rules and conditions allowed Jamal to contest. “As long as the person is not bankrupt or guilty of a crime, they can contest. Even though he is 48, he can contest because the chief can be of any age. It is only the other members who need to be 40 and below.”
He said it was sad to see Umno lowering itself to this level.
“How can we expect others to respect us if we allow such candidates to contest,” he said, adding that he hoped to see changes in Umno after the party polls on June 30.