#HPU914 : Umno-PAS union set for Sept 14

Both Umno and PAS will be signing a unity and understanding pact during its Muslim Unity Gathering (Himpunan Penyatuan Ummah or HPU914) next month.

In a joint press conference, Umno secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa and his PAS counterpart Datuk Takiyuddin Hassan said the agreement was meant for political harmony and the betterment of the nation.

“We also see the HPU914 as an option, an alternative that we are giving Malaysians. We are in the Opposition and we are facing the ruling government, so this gathering is a concept, an option for Malaysians.

“Of course, the end goal is the 15th General Election. This gathering is a dynamic movement, ” said Takiyuddin.

Annuar said both Malay-based parties believed that uniting the ummah (the whole community of Muslims bound together by religion) was something that must be done.

“But of course, it will not stop at party-level cooperation, ” he said.

He said the pact or memorandum of understanding signed would contain certain philosophies and agreement between both parties, but did not reveal what they were.

He said the agreement would be signed on Sept 14 by both party presidents, and the content of the MoU would be revealed then.

He said HPU914 would begin a day earlier, on Sept 13, with

various activities involving a wide cross-section of rank-and-file from both Umno and PAS, with

several joint events by the Wanita, Pemuda and Puteri movements from both parties.

Apart from that, Annuar said Barisan Nasional coalition partners as well as Gagasan Sejahtera (an informal coalition of opposition Islamist political parties) would also be invited to attend the gathering.

He said everyone was welcomed to join the event at the Putra World Trade Centre here, which will feature many stalls and food trucks, and the organisers expected at least 10,000 people to turn up.

The Star