Umno delegates attending the assembly at the World Trade Centre here are expected to vote on the motion just before 3pm.

If the motion is passed, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and his deputy Mohamad Hasan will not face a challenge in the party polls which must be held no later than May 19.

One delegate, who declined to be named, said the removal of the name tags casts a shadow over the voting on the motion.

“All the name tags for the divisions have been removed,” the delegate told FMT.

The delegate’s remarks come after former Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin claimed “dirty tactics” have been employed to ensure there is no contest for the top two posts.

In a TikTok video, Khairy claimed that a motion at the party’s general assembly to bar a challenge for the president and deputy president’s posts would most likely be “bulldozed” through when it is up for voting this evening.

Some leaders have supported the call for the top two posts to be contested with many delegates also making their views known in the assembly yesterday.

Yesterday, when the proposal for the motion not to contest the top two posts was made by a delegate, there were boos heard in the hall.

FMT has reached out to Umno secretary-general Ahmad Maslan on the missing name tags on the seats, while party information chief Isham Jalil declined to comment on what he regarded as rumours.

Meanwhile, a delegate from Johor, who declined to be named said many were at a loss as to why the name tags were removed.

“This has never happened before,” he said, adding the name tags usually remained on the seats until the general assembly was over.

Meanwhile, Setiawangsa Umno Youth deputy chief Irwan Rizal said the party must provide an explanation on the issue to prevent any speculation.

“This can affect Umno’s image, especially that it is not transparent. We need to avoid this and the perception that the organising of the general assembly was not done properly.

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