“Yes, they met me. They came to tell me they wanted to leave,” the Pakatan Harapan chairman said after the launch of the new Proton X70.

He said the exodus of the senior party leaders and elected representatives, who declared themselves as independents, was entirely their decision.

Asked if Pakatan Harapan would accept the former Umno Sabah leaders, Mahathir said: “We have to see how they behave. If they are supportive and didn’t do anything wrong in the past, we will accept them.”

However, Mahathir said these leaders had to remain independent and support the government for the time being.

Sabah Umno chief Hajiji Mohd Noor today joined other elected representatives, senators and senior division leaders in leaving the party and becoming independents, effectively crippling the party in the state.

Hajiji said that the decision was unanimous, adding that it was taken because “Umno is not what it used to be”.

Those leaving comprised four MPs, nine assemblymen, two senators and 21 division heads.

They also pledged support for Pakatan Harapan and the state government.

Malaysian car

Meanwhile, in his speech, Mahathir expressed hope that Proton Holdings Bhd and Zheijang Geely Holding Group Co Ltd would eventually produce a fully Malaysian-made vehicle.

He said his optimism was based on Proton’s significant improvement after its collaboration with Geely.

“I am quite sure that in the future, we are going to see a lot more designs and models which will make Malaysia proud.

“We’ll have a 100% Malaysia car done completely in Malaysia, with Geely,” he said.

The X70 is Proton’s first SUV model and is equipped with autonomous features which includes voice commands. Its price ranges from RM99,800 to RM123,800.