The problem with Umno is UMNO...

Many expected that Umno would do badly in the state elections, and that was actually a no brainer. Now, there are talks surfacing about the Umno leadership, especially that of Zahid Hamidi as the scapegoat of all scapegoats. What a simplistic thing to say! Then there is one supreme council member saying that Umno must review its ties with DAP in order to win over the Malays. Wah…itu macam saja kah?

So, if I were to conclude, the problem of Umno seems to be Zahid Hamidi and DAP. I will bet anything under the sun if we eliminate both Zahid Hamidi and the DAP, Umno would probably perform as bad or even worse, not better at all. I am not here to support Zahid, nor am I here to support the DAP but to show that Umno has no idea of its own 40-year history of faults when Tun M began his reign

Why did Umno lose in Kelantan? During the days of Reformasi, when PAS carried the banner of injustice to Anwar Ibrahim, I heard ceramah after ceramah on how Umno made Kelantan an “anak tiri.” In one ceramah Nik Aziz lamented that the grant from the federal offers would always come in late and development budget for infrastructure was always difficult to get from Tun M, the president of Umno then.

I also saw how Umno ridiculed PAS by saying bad things about the party’s ideas on Islam and scaring non-Malays from that party. Can such efforts be forgotten by voters now in their seventies and who advise their children? As the saying goes, what goes around comes around.

Next, let’s look at how Umno of the recent past treated the DAP. The narrative of DAP as a hantu Melayu and a pontianak to Islam has always been the pillar that binds ignorant Malay voters, whether they are from the educated side or non-educated ones. DAP is seen to be threatening everything Melayu and everything Islam.

I know many Umno leaders who were appointed to top positions in the party and in the government just because they are the loudest in being kurang ajar to DAP. Malay people love it when the Umno clowns shout and jeer at non-Malays because most Malays are “polite” and do not like to display their disdain for others in public. But Malays support people like Tajuddin Abdul Rahman, and now Sanusi of Kedah.

When Isham Jalil says that Umno needs to review its relationship with DAP, I wanted to both laugh and throw up at the same time. The analogy of the relationship was so funny and disgusting that prompted my reaction. Let’s say you moved into a new neighborhood where your next-door neighbor keeps an immaculate and clean house and garden. You, however, keep a dirty house.

So, when visitors come to your house, they cannot help but comment on the cleanliness of your neighbor’s house compared to yours. Your reaction? Oh, I must move away from this neighbor and live with neighbors that keep as dirty a house as I do and then I won’t be noticed at all. Or, you curse the neighbor for making you look bad.

Isham Jalil’s reaction is exactly this. Blame someone else. It is easier to not change oneself and make others the bogeyman. Why did Umno lose? Because of Ahmad Zahid and DAP? It’s easier to not change oneself and make others the bogeyman. Next, Umno members and voters love corrupt leaders. There is no denying that.

Look at Najib’s followers. Now look at Sanusi’s. One leader is proven to be corrupt while another is perhaps going to face the same charges. Do the Malays care that the people’s money is used to enrich Malay politicians and Malay civil servants? No, the Malays love it. Why?

Well, rich Malays show that they are as successful as rich Chinese, right? It does not matter where the Malays got the money as long as they can flash their luxury cars, castle-like houses and jewel-bedecked wives. That is success in the Malay dictionary. So, hundreds of Birkin bags with a price tag of a hundred thousand ringgit is a sign of success.

Next, rich Malays can give money to poor Malays, donate to mosques, give money to tahfizs and help many thousands perform the Hajj or Umrah. Malays have no idea about the taxes and how the collected money belongs to all citizens of all races. Why? Most of the Malays do not pay taxes! I know warung owners who can afford to go for Umrah every year and yet do not pay taxes or even help the poor of their own community.

Finally, Umno groomed 20 universities to produce Malays with mediocre qualifications so that they can just makan gaji or the worst of them become ministers and prime ministers. Any intelligent Malay will be criticized as being too progressive, too moderate, too compromising with others and too critical to accept orders blindly.

The best Malays are those who don’t read and don’t ask questions of a packaged history of Malays against the others, follow ustaz in religion without asking serious questions about compassion for all humans, works for the government, works for GLCs, and the rest become businessmen to get projects from the government from inflated costs and return the 10% back to the party as political donation.

For the academics, Umno appointed the university leadership that does not understand how knowledge can change society, the environment and a prosperous economic future. The role of the leadership is to make KPIs that have no relevance to change unless they benefit one race that supports Umno.

So, why did Umno lose? Because of Zahid and DAP? Please don’t think Malaysians are stupid! I have lived 40 years of watching Umno thrive, break, and now almost dead. Umno needs a new crop of Malays in order to change. I do not mind the election loss if Umno can actually review its moral and spiritual foundation.

Umno needs to perhaps work very closely with Amanah and MUDA to find a new frame of nation consciousness. Leave PKR and DAP on one side. Umno should ask G25 and G70 Melayu professors on how they should rethink their young Pemuda to rebuild.

Let ABIM and IKRAM work with Anwar for their Madani Islam, while Umno works with others for a new Malay that carries the spirit of Onn Jaafar, Tun Dr. Ismail, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tun Abdul Razak.

Let Umno forge a new identity for itself and its new best buddies. I will be the first to support Umno if it can discard its past Malay base. Umno must look at a Malaysian base from Semenanjung, Sabah and Sarawak.

Leave the Hadi Malays, Sanusi Malays to themselves. There is no place in the borderless world for a tempurung Melayu but the sky is the limit for the Malays who view themselves as part of a global humanity. This is also the new Malay base for Umno. Can Umno bring this change…please? - Prof Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi 

Below are some views from netizens which resonate with the party’s grassroots that the present UMNO leadership might want to consider...

Former Besut MP Tan Sri Idris Jusoh’s short but fiery FB post in which he blamed Zahid who is also the Deputy Prime Minister for UMNO’s poor showing. “UMNO lost badly in the state polls yesterday (Aug 12). UMNO lost 100% in Terengganu. Zahid Hamidi needs to resign,” the former Terengganu menteri besar (2004-2008) hit out.

Ut ZM: UMNO/BN should leave the unity government and go solo so people will be more comfortable with the party. The sentiment among UMNO members who dislike DAP is still strong. UMNO members will never forget DAP’s ideology.

Arm Kedah: The youngsters are almost 100% with the PN…. UMNO Youth needs to work hard to win them back and invite them to sit together to fight instead of them just hanging around with their gangs… They just couldn’t be bothered with us anymore…. a heavy task indeed for UMNO Youth.

Kamarulariffin Rahim: UMNO is still lulled by a beautiful dream. The general election will come (GE16) but it is not certain if UMNO is able to defend its 30 seats (garnered in GE15). So just don’t listen to the president.

Megat Idris Ismail: Tell the president to resign or just pass a vote of no confidence against him. Otherwise UMNO will disappear in Malaysia. – focusmalaysia

IndigoTrout2522: Umno has too many warlords who have only self-interest and would resist reforms.Umno had already lost its influence amongst the “rakyat” in 2008 or even earlier, when it lost a 2/3 majority in Parliament due to the actions of former prime ministers Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Najib Abdul Razak.

BOBBYO: Is it entirely Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's fault for their big loss? A big part of it maybe. Why did not the Malays respond to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, even after they came in droves to hear him speak? What did he do that was wrong and not accepted by the voters from Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu? What do the Malays want to make them change their minds? What about the many Umno members or leaders that even after enjoying the many years of perks and benefits under Umno, betrayed their party?

BlueShark1548: Yes, Umno did badly. Zahid, however, has a duty to the nation and should stay on for the full term of the unity government.He should consider resignation after reforms have been carried out by the government and that would be his legacy.Without Zahid, we would not have a unity government and stability.

Open Mind: All Umno leaders should be responsible for the failure to convince the grassroots to vote for the unity government but instead stay away or vote for PN.The supreme council should examine and revamp to win the hearts of the Malays or Umno may have to close shop.

Headhunter: Umno can be strong if they are willing to make a change at the top. Those who are tainted by corruption and abuse of power should be dumped. Why should members be loyal to those who caused the party to lose its power and reputation? There are still a bunch of greedy leaders not only the seniors but also their sycophants who are seeking rents for themselves.

PinkOtter1274: If Zahid steps down, the person replacing him might vote to leave the government and align them to the PN.Harapan is caught between a rock and a hard place. Sadly, Mahathir has brainwashed Malays to fear the DAP, painting them as anti-Islam, anti-Malay and anti-bumiputera rights. - mk

DAP wants one Penang 

exco post for Umno...

DAP has agreed to allocate one Penang exco position for Umno.The decision was made at a central executive committee meeting in Kuala Lumpur tonight. "There are two BN candidates who won in Penang, so we will appoint a BN representative from Umno to sit on the state executive council," said DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke.

Penang is headed by DAP's Chow Kon Yeow. The two BN candidates who won seats in Penang on Saturday were Reezal Merican Naina Merican (Bertam) and Rashidi Zinol (Sungai Acheh).

Umno supreme council member Isham Jalil

Saturday's six state elections had mostly been disastrous for Umno - the only BN party to contest. The party was wiped out in Terengganu - as was Pakatan Harapan - as well as in Kedah.

The electoral drubbing had stirred rebellion within Umno, with some like supreme council member Isham Jalil calling for the party to review its relationship with DAP.

Isham had said that part of the reason Umno performed poorly on Saturday was that the party's grassroots were still uncomfortable with DAP. As such, he said that Umno should review whether or not it should reserve cooperation with DAP strictly within the confines of working in the government, but not during elections.

cheers.