PUTRAJAYA: Umno has yet to discuss former minister Khairy Jamaluddin’s intention to rejoin the party, said its president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
“So far, not yet,” he said briefly when asked about the former Umno Youth chief’s reported desire to return to the party, after delivering his keynote address at the 2025 Putrajaya Festival of Ideas here on Tuesday.
Ahmad Zahid said he did meet Khairy at the wedding of Perlis UMNO chairman Datuk Rozabil Abdul Rahman’s daughter last Sunday, but declined to confirm or deny claims that he had given his blessing for Khairy’s return to Umno.
“I only met him at the wedding ceremony, and we didn’t discuss anything. What appeared in the media is news written by the media, and I respect that.
“I don’t wish to contradict any journalist who wrote about the matter, unlike what someone else once did,” he said.
Earlier media reports stated that Khairy, better known by his initials KJ, is expected to rejoin Umno before the Sabah state election later this month.
According to reports, the former health minister had received the "blessing" of Umno’s top leadership, particularly Ahmad Zahid himself, when attending the wedding ceremony.
In January 2023, Khairy was expelled from Umno for openly criticising the party’s top leadership during the 15th General Election campaign, but since then, he has repeatedly affirmed his decision not to join any other party out of loyalty to Umno.
