Mohamad, who is also known as Tok Mat, said yesterday he is ready to defend his deputy president’s post if the position is contested in the next party elections.

Speaking at a ceramah in Gombak last night, Isham called on Mohamad to reconsider his decision and take on Zahid for the party presidency.

“I want to tell Tok Mat, why do you want to contest for the deputy president’s post?” he said.

“Contest against Zahid. Contest (to be) the president, Tok Mat.”

Isham said many among Umno’s grassroots would support Mohamad if he were to take on Zahid as they do not want to be associated with the current president.

There have been numerous calls for Zahid to resign as party president, especially after Barisan Nasional’s dismal performance in the state elections last August which saw the coalition winning only 19 of the 108 seats it contested in all six states.

Zahid and Mohamad have held the top two posts in Umno since the party’s 2018 elections.

Isham also called on Mohamad to lead Umno in leaving the unity government, which he criticised for issues such as the increased cost of living and its ties with US investment firm BlackRock, a key global asset manager with a large investment portfolio of firms operating in Malaysia.

Several quarters have been urging Putrajaya to scrap a plan to privatise Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) because one of the proposed shareholders, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), has ties with BlackRock, which has been accused of “profiteering from genocide” through its stakes in US defence firms that allegedly manufacture weapons used by Israel.

“Don’t wait until the last minute (for Umno to leave the government),” he said.

“This will split the (Malay) votes, and in the end, Anwar (Pakatan Harapan chairman and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) will win again.”