Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin said he would accept the leadership's decision not to field him as a candidate in the coming general election if he is not considered a "winnable candidate".

He said the decision on candidates was the prerogative of Umno president Najib Abdul Razak and he had the final say on the candidates who could give a win for Umno and BN.

"If the Umno president decides that I am not a winnable candidate, I'll accept the decision," he told reporters at a function in Kota Baharu last night.

NONE Khairy (right) said that what was crucial was to ensure victory for the party.

He urged party members and leaders to accept all decisions made by the party leadership on the matter.

"If there are members or leaders who are not selected as election candidates and want to sabotage other candidates, the movement will report that to the leadership," he added.

He said those who found themselves not elected as election candidates should accept the decision because they might not fulfil some of the criteria set by the party leadership, one of which was that they should be accepted by the local community.

"Now is no longer a question of whether the person is popular in the party if he or she is highly educated. What is important is whether the people accept that person to ensure BN wins," he added.

- Bernama