KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 — Khairy Jamaluddin today declined to say if he has formally applied to return to Umno, telling reporters he would only make an announcement “when the time comes”.
According to Free Malaysia Today (FMT), the former Rembau MP was speaking to the media after attending a Pemuda Umno event at the World Trade Centre (WTC) Kuala Lumpur.
Khairy’s presence at Umno headquarters this afternoon has fuelled renewed speculation that he may be rejoining the party, nearly two years after he was expelled for breaching party discipline in January 2023.
FMT reported that Khairy was invited as a panel speaker at a forum titled “Reformasi Sistem Pendidikan Pada Zaman AI dan Pemerkasaan Institusi Guru”.
The event, organised by the youth wing under its chief Dr Akmal Saleh, drew an enthusiastic audience.
Those present reportedly stood up, chanted “hidup Khairy”, and applauded loudly each time the former youth and sports minister shared his thoughts.
During the forum, Khairy proposed measures to ease teachers’ workload, including deploying artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help prepare teaching materials and assist with marking.
He also expressed appreciation to Akmal for inviting him to the programme.
In response, Akmal said he extended the invitation for the sake of the party’s future.
“We were bold (in holding this programme) for the country’s future, and we boldly invited KJ for Umno’s future,” he was quoted as saying.
FMT earlier reported that Khairy is expected to rejoin Umno ahead of the Sabah state election on Nov 29.
Today marked his first appearance in the building since his expulsion two years ago.
Khairy, a former Umno Youth chief, previously held roles in government including health minister and youth and sports minister.
