In a brief posting on Facebook this evening after the meeting ended, Mohamad (popularly known as Tok Mat) said the discussions had gone well.

The meeting had begun at about 3.30pm, according to vice-president Khaled Nordin.

Those present were party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi; Mohamad; vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who is the prime minister; Khaled; and vice-president Mahdzir Khalid.

No details were given about the topics discussed, which has been widely speculated to be about the timing of the next general election.

Following the leadership discussions, meetings of the Umno political bureau and the Supreme Council are being held today.

Supreme Council members Puad Zarkashi, Isham Jalil, Azalina Othman Said, Bung Moktar Radin and Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan were among those seen arriving for the council meeting.

Earlier, the party’s Terengganu, Pahang, Perak and Selangor chiefs, Ahmad Said, Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail, Saarani Mohamad and Noh Omar, respectively, were seen entering through the lobby of Menaro Dato Onn, Umno’s headquarters at the Kuala Lumpur World Trade Centre.

The next general election has to be held by September next year, but some Umno leaders have pressed for it to be called this year following convincing victories for Barisan Nasional at state elections held over the past two years.