PETALING JAYA: The prime minister candidate from Umno or Barisan Nasional should not bind himself to any form of agreement to maintain the structure of the previous Perikatan Nasional government, says Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.

       Asyraf Wajdi said he had mentioned during last night's Umno supreme council meeting that the candidate must follow the advice of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to form a Cabinet that is capable of translating the political unity and consensus among all political parties during the period to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, to manage the welfare of the rakyat and the national recovery agenda before calling for the 15th General Election at a suitable time in the future.

       "As informed by the Umno president regarding the message conveyed by the King, who repeatedly mentioned during the audience with the heads of political parties on Tuesday (Aug 17), that 'the winner does not win everything and the losers do not lose everything'," Asyraf Wajdi said in a Facebook post Wednesday (Aug 18).

       "Surely, there is a wise reason why the King had ordered for a vote of confidence in Parliament to legitimise the position of the prime minister soon after he announced it," added Asyraf Wajdi.

       Umno and Barisan held meetings late Tuesday night to discuss their choice of prime minister.

       The Umno top leadership is expected to announce their pick soon, but sources have indicated that Barisan and Umno are expected to endorse Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob as their choice for prime minister.

       The King on Tuesday (Aug 17) had granted a joint audience to the political party heads.

       The King urged politicians across the divide to unite in addressing the Covid-19 pandemic and its resulting economic fallout, said Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.