Ku Li to Umno: Wake up or be wasted
Tengku Razaleigh said if they do not recognise the subtle warnings from the people, the party and their allies might be in trouble by the time the 14th general election arrives
Hawkeye, Free Malaysia Today
Barisan Nasional maybe staring at its second by-election defeat in a week and an Umno veteran has called on the coalition to change before it is too late.
Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said Umno – the linchpin of BN should begin to realise that the time has come to change how they do things.
The former Finance Minister and Umno vice-president did not mince words when he said : “time to buck up, a need for stronger leadership, and time to put one’s foot down,”
Tengku Razaleigh ( Ku Li) said if they do not recognise the subtle warnings from the people, the party and their allies might be in trouble by the time the 14th general election arrives.
BN did not contest in the Bukit Gelugor parliament by-election, which was a traditional MCA seat and they may now lose out in the Teluk Intan parliamentary by-election .
In both cases the threat comes from DAP who seem to have grown stronger despite the presence of race and religious polarisation elements.
Political observers say Gerakan president Mah Siew Keong, 53, a local community leader is struggling against a 27-year-old Ipoh born young woman, Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud from DAP.
Mah has been involved in politics for over 20-years while Dyana Sofya, less than six years.
He has a track record and stands to become a full minister, yet young Dyana Sofya, with absolute no experience, except for her beauty, is said to be leading.
If the by-election was taking place in the 1980s, Mah would have likely crushed Dyana Sofya, with a landslide majority.
Now, 20-years later, BN is seen as an out of touch political giant, made worse with the tainted reputation of leaders, who are accused of power abuse, corruption, nepotism and cronyism.
Although generally, Malaysia’s economic performance is said to be comparably good despite the twin recessions of recent years in USA and the European Union, the inability to rein – in the rise of living costs amid claims of wastage in the public sector, is said to be another downturn for BN.
Alluding to the next election, Tengku Razaliegh said: “Four years from now is not too long. Umno needs to buck up.”
