The amendments were unanimously agreed upon by the 2,586 delegates present.

With the amendment, Umno can postpone party polls up to six months after a general election or up to 18 months from the end of its leadership’s term – whichever comes later.

“Following a unanimous vote for the proposed amendment, we have amended the party constitution,” said Najib after the Umno extraordinary general meeting (EGM) held in Dewan Merdeka at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur here today.

“This means that based on the amended constitution, now the party polls will only be held after the general election.

“We have followed due process and adhered to the law. There is no reason for the Registrar of Societies (RoS) to deny a decision which has been reached unanimously.”

Umno’s elections for the 2021-2023 term were due on June 30 last year but were postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The motion to postpone the party elections to six months after GE15 was first approved at the Umno general assembly in March, with Umno deputy president Mohamad Hasan warning that failure to do so could lead to disunity in the party ahead of the general election.

If the amendments were not implemented, Umno would have had to hold party elections at the end of this year. The last party elections were held in 2018.

During the general assembly in March, Mohamad expressed concern that Umno’s push to postpone its party elections might face a stumbling block as the RoS is not under the purview of a minister from Umno.

The home ministry, which oversees RoS, is under Hamzah Zainudin, who is secretary-general of Bersatu and Perikatan Nasional. The Larut MP defected to Bersatu in February 2019, nine months after winning the seat under Barisan Nasional.

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