Najib’s Umno: is it really back to basics?

This article previously appeared in The Malaysian Insider.

Umno must return to its roots to be an all-inclusive party. That was the main theme of Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s presidential speech at last week’s Umno general assembly when outlining the changes the party needs to do to survive.

I hope the Umno delegates to the annual assembly understood what Najib meant.

I have some doubts after reading the comments of some top Umno leaders who quickly proclaimed that the amendments made to the party constitution as being the “new” democracy for the organisation.

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Annus horribilis

This article previously appeared in The Malaysian Insider.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri. It is exactly a year since I offered myself for the Umno deputy presidency.

I knew I didn’t have a chance in hell of getting enough nominations to be eligible and it could also be suicidal to my “young” political career. But I thought it was worth the sacrifice to send a signal to the top leadership that Umno’s time in power is over if we don’t change.

Umno president Datuk Seri Mohamed Najib Razak probably got my message when he used the phrase “change or be changed” in the party’s general assembly before taking over as Prime Minister in April.

So six months into Najib’s reign as the country’s sixth prime minister, what does Umno have to show?

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