Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi reminded Umno members not to jeopardise the party even after losing their positions as they are only temporary.

Although he did not mention any names, his whole speech addressed differences of opinion in Umno, which are led by deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin after the latter was ousted from the DPM post last month.

“Our positions in the party are temporary. All positions are temporary. Even if you have served the party for 40 years, don’t let the one rainy days cloud a year of good days,” he told the Putrajaya Umno division delegates in their annual general meeting tonight.

Muhyiddin earlier had lashed out at party members who urged his ouster while labelling him a traitor.

The former said he has contributed much to the party in the over 40 years he has been a member, including rebuilding Johor Umno after Umno was declared illegal in 1988.

Muhyiddin had been vocal against party president Najib Abdul Razak over the 1MDB fiasco.

Zahid said that Najib was only being tested with the scandals and criticism looped to him from all angles and believed his boss would persevere.

He said it is normal for a dynamic party such as Umno being tested and leaders leaving, but the grassroots are the one who kept the party going.

“Leaders come and go.

“Even if the leaders left, the Umno members’ loyalty are still strong because of their solidarity,” he said.

He gave history lessons about how leaders left Umno such as their founder, Onn Jaafar, who left in 1951 to form a new party, as well as those who joined other splinter parties like PAS and Semangat 46.