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KUALA LUMPUR: Former Prime Minister Najib Razak believes that holding the Umno elections early can further divide and weaken the party, as those who lose may be drawn in by rival parties.
The party’s snap election idea was pushed by Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who said today that the elections to be held this year must be sped up so that the party’s internal conflicts can be resolved before the next general election. .
Speaking to journalists after delivering his keynote address at the Malaysia Democracy Forum, the Pekan MP said that holding early party elections risks causing a rift between the factions as there would invariably be winners and losers. .
“If there is another party that wants to weaken Umno, they will wait for the elections and invite or persuade those who lost to join them.”
In addition, he said it would be difficult to create a level playing field, as members of the Umno with ministerial functions could use the machinery of the government to improve their offers, which would be unfair to those who do not have functions in the cabinet.
He said that given the risks, it is a decision that must be carefully studied by those responsible.
Najib warns of ailments plaguing Malaysia
In his previous closing speech, Najib listed the ailments plaguing the country, noting that structural reforms must be made in parties, political funding and voter registration.
He said normalizing party hopping as a means to an end was akin to telling people that “it’s okay to change loyalty as long as it serves our purpose.”
Najib said that to date, 40 MPs have changed their allegiance since GE14, and that in 2020 there will be a change of administration in four states due to the holidays.
He added that such instability caused Malaysia’s foreign direct investment to fall 68% to a meager $ 2.5 billion last year, while Indonesia attracted a whopping $ 18 billion in FDI.
“Malaysia is performing worse than our neighboring countries,” he said.
In addition, he warned that the holidays and the emergency declaration have left the government with the unlimited ability to continue to borrow money without detailing how and where it would spend it.
He also spoke about Padang Rengas MP Nazri Aziz’s idea of adopting a party list system in which the seat remains with the party in case the sitting MP decides to defect to another party.
On political donations, Najib said the reality is that political activities, like any other activity, have a cost.
“With the cost comes the act of raising funds. The question is: how does a political party do it and do it on a scale large enough to cover the cost associated with running it? ”. I ask.
In 2014, he said that he had discussed the idea of a Political Financing Law, adding that PH, after coming to power in 2018, failed to deliver on its reform promises.
On the delay of the Undi18 policy, he said that it shows that the current government does not trust the younger generation to make decisions for themselves.
“Is the current administration denying you the freedom to exercise your right to choose? If so, isn’t the administration telling our younger generation that they have no voice in determining their future? ” I ask.
