Umno secretary-general Khalil Yaakob said today that aspiration of young party leaders to contest in the general election would be given due consideration by the party leadership.

The ability of the potential candidates and the confidence they enjoy among voters in the various constituencies would be among the criterias to be considered in the selection process, he said.

Khalil who is also the Minister of Information was commenting o­n the statement by Puteri Umno head Azalina Othman Said that young leaders should also be considered as candidates to reflect the leadership's confidence in them.

He said such requests were common during the run up to the general election.

Assurance

Many young leaders requested that their ranks made up a particular percentage of the candidates lined up and that their number should be increased and so o­n, Bernama quoted Khailil as saying in Kuantan, Pahang

He assured them that the leadership would consider all these matters.

However long serving individuals should also be given the opportunity as choice of candidates was not based o­n age, he added."Opportunities should also be given to those who had served long as the voters had confidence in them and they are also capable people," Khalil added