KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Barisan Nasional decided that no action should be taken against SAPP "at the moment" because it was not clear whether its call for a no-confidence vote against Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as Prime Minister was a personal view or that of the party.

Abdullah, who is the Barisan chairman, said there was no need for a show-cause letter against the party for now because he considered the no-faith statement to be the personal views of SAPP president Datuk Yong Teck Lee.

"It is not a question of being afraid to take action. They (SAPP) have not done anything wrong at the moment. We must make sure any action we take is correct.

"We cannot take action against the party before they have made a decision (on the matter)," he said after chairing an emergency Barisan supreme council meeting.

The meeting was called a day after Yong said his party had lost confidence in Abdullah and that its two MPs (Sepanggar Datuk Eric Enjin Machimbun and Tawau MP Datuk Dr Chua Soon Bui) would support a no-confidence vote against the Prime Minister in Parliament.

However SAPP deputy president Datuk Raymond Tan accused Yong of acting arbitrarily.

The SAPP supreme council will meet today to discuss the issue.

"We want to hear a verification or denial from the SAPP supreme council itself (whether they support or oppose Yong)," said Barisan secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor at the press conference.

At the Barisan meeting, all component parties except SAPP, which was absent, pledged support for the continued leadership of Abdullah.

They slammed Yong for his comments, saying that the action was "without principles, unethical and goes against the very spirit of the Barisan coalition."

Tengku Adnan said SAPP was not invited because the meeting was a discussion on them.

He also said component parties had been directed to make sure all their MPs attend the Parliament sittings and reject any vote of no-confidence against the Prime Minister.

Abdullah, when asked how he felt about the personal attacks against him, said: "I have been a politician for a long time. This is not something new."

"If people criticise or are angry with me, what can I do? It is normal. As a politician, you face all sorts of accusations."

He said what was important was that he and those around him do not feel "disturbed" about such attacks.

"I have work to do and I will continue with my work. That is my responsibility," he said.

Abdullah stressed that the people had given Barisan a strong mandate in the last general election.

"We cannot allow ourselves to be sidetracked by such issues which crop up from time to time. I have to be focussed on what I want to do," he said.

Nevertheless, Abdullah said, Yong's comments had been serious enough to warrant an emergency Barisan meeting.

"No one supported Yong. Everyone totally rejected and regretted what Yong said because it is inappropriate and went against the spirit of co-operation of Barisan," he said.