Muhkriz Denies Having Said He'll Quit Umno In July - Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 (Bernama) -- Umno Youth Executive Council member Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir Wednesday denied he had stated he would quit Umno in July should Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi not step down as Umno president and prime minister by then.

He said he had only said that he had the right to change his stand at any time according to developments and had also not stated that there was only one way out, and which was to quit the party, when there were many other options.

"I did not say that by July if the prime minister does not step down, then I will quit the party," he told reporters at the lobby of Parliament House, here.

Mukhriz, who is the Member of Parliament for Jerlun, said the reference to July was because of the Umno branch meetings scheduled to begin then and he hoped that a drastic change would take place before the branch meetings begin, and not that he would quit the party.

He had said Tuesday that he would not quit Umno as his father, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, did two days ago because there was much work to be done and his struggle was not for the party alone but for his parliamentary constituency as well.

Umno Youth chief Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein had expressed regret over Mukhriz's statement and said he would refer the matter to the party's management committee.

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