Umno Youth deputy chief Razali Ibrahim welcomed his number one Khairy Jamaluddin's call for a shift in thinking to further strengthen the movement.

Razali ( below ), who is also the deputy youth and sports minister, described his chief's speech as pro-active which, unlike past speeches, called for fostering closer relations with the other races.

"We have appointed a committee member specifically to look after our friends within the (BN) component parties. At the same time, within BN, we have appointed a representative to be the secretariat.

"These moves are directed at strengthening our coordination and ties within BN component parties," said Razali.

razali ibrahim He also praised Khairy for his proposal to the government to set up a Youth Bank. He said there are 11.6 million youth between the ages of 17 to 40 and it is proper that a bank is set-up to cater for them.

"If there is a bank for agriculture, the co-operatives, why not one for the youth? It would spur youth activities and contribute to their advancement," he said.

"If such a bank is set up, the government can can place it under my ministry or the finance ministry. Either way, it would benefit the youth, who make up the majority of the population," he added.

Razali also said Khairy's proposals to provide discounts for the purchase of national cars by newly-married couples, and vouchers for the purchase of milk and diapers would help the less fortunate.

Delegates debating Khairy's speech, however, failed to warm to his call for a departure from the concept of "Malay dominance" or "Ketuanan Melayu" to one of "Malay leadership".

'Don't let Najib walk alone'

Rather, delegates chose to touch on bread and butter issues like the need for the top youth leadership to look after those at the lower level.

A delegate from Johor also brought up the issue of funds not filtering down to mobilise the election machinery. "You must make sure that the "gift" goes through.

"Without it, we do not know what to do," said the delegate. "If you want to offer a gift, give it properly to ensure the youth of today support Umno."

NONE Another delegate from Federal Territory said proper emphasis must given to Umno and Barisan Nasional so that they'll will be able to wrest parliamentary seats dominated by the opposition.

A delegate from Malacca, called on Umno Youth members not to let Umno president and Prime Minister Najib Razak to walk alone in promoting the '1Malaysia' concept.

A representative from Selangor reminded members not to rest on their laurels.

"We in Selangor know what it is like under opposition rule. Trust me, you do not want to face a similar situation.

"Although the Selangor Menteri Besar is a Malay, it is the non- Malays, in particular the DAP, which dominates the agenda," he said.

A delegate from Penang said the success of the Bagan Pinang by-election must be repeated so that Umno and BN continue to stay in power.