Malaysia's ruling party sacks deputy due to row with PM

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR

Malaysia's ruling party suspended its deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin in an emergency party meeting Friday, seven months after he was sacked as deputy prime minister.

The supreme council, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO)'s highest decision making body, voted to boot-out Yassin as deputy president after his criticism of prime minister-cum-party chief Najib Razak.

The criticism revolved around the discovery of $681 million in Razak's bank accounts later attributed to a political donation, and mass losses at state-owned investment vehicle 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB)

Yassin was not present at the meeting where the 21 present supreme council members unanimously approved a motion to suspend the senior politician.

Razak and Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi abstained, UMNO Secretary General Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor later told a media conference.

Mansor said the council found Yassin had breached article 10.15 of the party’s constitution, which specifies that the party deputy must aid the president in his duties.

"He [Yassin] has clearly violated this provision after he continued to criticize the prime minister and the government on the 1MDB affair and $681 million donation," said Mansor.

Yassin had been deputy prime minister since 2009, but was dropped in a cabinet reshuffle last July after openly questioning Razak about 1MDB.

In being sacked, Yassin joined imprisoned former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as the only two deputy prime ministers sacked while holding positions.