Umno has to admit that it is now facing an erosion of trust and must find ways to stay relevant, party vice-president Hishammuddin Hussein said.

"We cannot continue having denial syndrome.

"We have to clearly, courageously and sincerely admit that Umno is facing a test of trust," he said at the closing ceremony of the Convention on the Empowerment of the Muslim Agenda in Kuala Lumpur today.

The new generation of Malays do not feel the sentimental connection with the party and they no longer feel like Umno is addressing issues that concerned them, Hishammuddin said.

It is not just about empowering the rights of Malay, he added, but also about preparing Malays to face the globalisation and modernisation of the world.

"Their (the Malays) world is getting more challenging, yet Umno does not seem to have a clear stand on all these issues, let alone provide them with solutions.

"We have to transform ourselves and listen and make sure whatever we do from now on takes into account the voices of the majority at every level of our society," he said.

If the party starts being more inclusive and listens to what's happening on the ground, the party will continue to be relevant, he said.

Without the trust from the party members and the rakyat, he added, Umno would not be at the height of power.

"The reality is, no matter how strong the unity is within Umno, if the rakyat rejects us, we will surely still lose," he said.

This is because Umno is a political party in a democratic framework, he added.

However, he stressed that crises must be faced as they are a maturing process, which teach them that regardless of what they have, the party is far from perfect.

The party has faced erosion of trust many times before, he pointed out, and they have always come out of it stronger.

"I hope we will be able to do the same thing today," he said.