KUALA LUMPUR: Umno has slipped into a dark abyss and recovering from it will not be easy, says Khairy Jamaluddin.

The former Umno supreme council member said that while he still has affection for the party, he was unsure if the party can recover.

He was responding to a question about whether he would have a higher chance of becoming a prime minister by rejoining Umno rather than Perikatan Nasional.

"I do not know about that (becoming prime minister).

“However, I think that Umno is in a very dark place at the moment and I am not quite sure if it can recover from this.

“Of course, it's a party that I have a lot of affection for, I've been with Umno for more than 20 years. But I believe that it has slipped into this abyss of darkness and I’m not quite sure it can ever recover from this,” he said after attending an event at UCSI University here on Saturday (July 1).

Asked if he would retire from politics, Khairy briefly said: “We will see.”

Khairy, who once helmed Umno Youth, was sacked by the party on Jan 27.

He has since been hired as a deejay by local radio station Hot FM.