Najib: We must clean up act
(The Star) – Umno has to clean up its act because a large proportion of the people in the country view Umno as arrogant and steeped in unhealthy practices, said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
The Deputy Prime Minister said: “We have to clean up. I have said openly before and I am not just saying this in front of a couple of MBs from the other side (Opposition leaders).
“If we don’t change, we will be changed. It is no secret we have to change. Insya-Allah, we will try to put (it) right and if we put right, people will support us,” said the Umno deputy president whose audience included Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.
Najib’s declaration came at the same time as a press conference that was being held at the Umno headquarters in which some of the contenders for the top posts in next week’s party elections were tied with allegations of money politics.
He was fielding questions from the audience after launching a report on the National Integrity Plan at the Malaysian Institute of Integrity yesterday,
A member of the audience had asked Najib if he was prepared to sacrifice “one of the big fishes” in Umno who was embroiled in allegations of money politics for the coming party polls.
Najib promised to bring reform once he took over the helm as party president.
“I have a few suggestions on what to reform in Umno. There will be reforms in Umno and I will address that later. I will not say now (but) I will say when the time comes,” he said.
Najib said Malaysians would only throw their support behind a Government that was open and transparent.
“The Government must cultivate the trust and confidence of the people. One way to get the people to trust us is by being transparent and to tell the truth. And I am committed to doing that,” he said.
Earlier in his speech, Najib stressed that it was important for a “chief executive officer” of an organisation to pick the right man to help him steer the organisation.
He explained that the common factors a boss looked at when choosing a man for a key position were ability, acceptability, integrity and loyalty.
“For me, integrity should be put first among the factors followed by ability. But sometimes in practice, it is more prone to put loyalty first.
“That is so because we might feel compatible with a person who is loyal to us. Nevertheless, if that person is loyal but without integrity and no ability, he can bring the downfall of the boss,” he said.
