Amidst complaints from certain quarters, Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin has assured that the party’s annual general meeting (AGM) was held in compliance with its constitution.

The Umno splinter party’s inaugural Dec 30 AGM came into question after hundreds of complaints were lodged at the Registrar of Societies (ROS), questioning how it could be held before party branches conducted their respective meetings to elect leaders. 

Muhyiddin explained today that the Bersatu constitution stipulates that branches need only have meetings after they pass the one year mark, and none of its 137 branches had done so.

“The first (Bersatu) branch approved by the ROS was the Pagoh branch, on July 24, 2017.

“According to our constitution... if these new divisions are not one year old, they do not need to have AGMs.

“Till now, not a single division is one year old.

“Those who have made the complaints do not understand (the constitution),” he said after chairing the Johor Pakatan Harapan meeting. The press conference was aired on Facebook Live.

Muhyiddin added that the party is considering taking legal and disciplinary action against those who complained about the AGM.

He also criticised Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (photo) for interfering in the process.

“Why is the deputy prime minister relying on these complaints? It should be up to the ROS to assess if these complaints are credible,” he said.

Zahid, who is also the home minister, has requested that the ROS launch a probe into Bersatu’s AGM but maintained he “never got involved in ROS’ operational activities”.

“We have asked ROS to not just initiate an investigation but to step up the probe and look into the complaints,” he was reported to have said by newswire Bernama.

Silent treatment from ROS

Meanwhile, Muhyiddin said Bersatu's previous letters to the ROS requesting for advice had gone unanswered.

“ROS did not respond when we asked for advice. Kami tak dilayan langsung (we have been ignored).

“It should a mutual understanding, where in order for any organisation to function, the ROS must play a role also.

“If you frustrate us and say no, how can we perform?” he said.

Earlier in the press conference, Muhyiddin announced that Johor Harapan will hold both a “monster rally” and a state-level convention in April.

The night rally will be attended by all top five national leaders including Dr Mahathir Mohamad and will be held on April 6 in Johor Bahru.

A date has not been set for the state-level convention, Muhyiddin said.

The state Harapan chairperson added that the coalition will also soon unveil its “tawaran” (offer) for Johor.