Umno needs restoration from within
(The Malaysian Insider) – Umno needs to undertake a restoration process within the party if it wants to remain the platform for the struggle of Malay interests.
Umno information chief Tan Sri Muhammad Muhd Taib who said this, also stressed the need for the party to return to its original struggle of championing the rights and interests of the Malay community when it was established in 1946.
To get his message across at his residence in Shah Alam recently, Muhammad cited the Meiji Restoration 150 years ago which saw Japan rising to become a world economic power.
The Meiji Restoration (1866-1869) also saw power returned to the Emperor from the Tokugawa Shogunate, Japan opening its doors to the world while preserving its socio-cultural identity, and from being a feudal to a capitalist state.
Muhammad, 63, who is contesting the Umno deputy president post in the upcoming party elections, said likewise, restoration in Umno would be in keeping with the country's changing political landscape and to win back the people's trust and confidence in the party.
He said the Malays' changed perception of Umno especially of late, as seen in the reduced support for Barisan Nasional in the last general election, called for this although the party had done a lot for the community.
Before Umno's inception, he said, those struggling for the interests of the Malays were mainly groups such as the teachers' associations, Kampung Baru traders' association, Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang-born associations, which with other groups, formed Umno.
"Perhaps Umno is now detached from such groups," said Muhammad, adding that the party should now get close to non-governmental organisations, trade associations and the chambers of commerce which struggled for Malay interests so that they could all work together for that common goal.
He said Umno's restoration process must also provide space for the younger generation's ideas and philosophies to be heard, in reshaping public perception of the party.
"The youths want transparency and fairness, hence Umno needs to adopt new, suitable approaches, which can also win public support, including from non-Malays.
"One era is different from the other, so Umno must move along with the times and the needs of young people, or it will be left behind."Muhammad also noted that PAS was no longer using the "Amanat Haji Hadi" (Message of Haji Hadi) which was seen as extreme, but the "PAS for All" slogan to gain the support of non-Malays.
He believed restoration could be effected if Umno leaders were honest, sincere and able to determine the direction of the party, like what its founder Dato' Onn Jaafar did in 1946 to unite the Malays with one aim – to fight colonialism.
On a personal level, Muhammad who is also Rural and Regional Development Minister, said he offered to contest the Umno No. 2 post to help rebuild Umno which he joined in 1964.
Asked what he would do if he won the post, he said he would focus on strengthening the party and uniting the members.
He said history had proven that disunity and conflicts among party leaders and members would only weaken it and not benefit anyone.
The other two candidates for the Umno deputy president post are International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Ali Rustam.
