He said in a statement that the change was necessary as the party’s number two, Mohamad Hasan, is now serving as the de facto president following Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s decision to hand over his duties and concentrate on his court cases.

“To ensure the party runs smoothly, Umno today decided that Ismail Sabri will hold the post while Zahid is on leave,” he said.

Annuar added the main aim now is to strengthen the party and its leadership.

Ismail Sabri was one of three vice-presidents elected in Umno polls held in July. He secured the highest number of votes when compared to Khaled Nordin and Mahdzir Khalid.

On Dec 18, Zahid announced that he would hand over his duties as Umno president to his deputy following an exodus of lawmakers and leaders from the party.

They had blamed their exit on the party president and said there was a lack of direction in the party.

The party, which won 54 parliamentary seats in the 14th general election, is now left with 37 seats following the departure of 17 MPs.

Zahid is facing over 40 charges of corruption and criminal breach of trust (CBT).