COMMENT The Umno General Assembly has come and gone. Most political observers had expected it to be the usual rah-rah event aimed at rallying Umno members ahead of the coming elections and in support of the leadership of Najib Razak, the party president.

They were right. The public were subject to yet another spectacle of sound and fury on how important the party is to the future of Malays, albeit with the occasional reminder of how indispensable the party is to the well-being of all the citizens of the country.