Whoever is elected the new Umno president must have the courage to change the party, Nurulhidayah Ahmad Zahid said today.

Her father, acting Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, was the first to announce his candidacy for the top post in the June 30 party elections.

“Whoever the new Umno president is has to be brave enough to make changes.

“The rakyat are watching. The rakyat are still judging.

“Umno is not for its members only,” a post on her Instagram account read.

Toxic elements will eventually appear by themselves, Nurulhidayah noted, though it is unclear what she was referring to specifically.

In the caption that accompanied the picture, she said that Umno needs to be more transparent since it is now part of the opposition.

“We need to stop being full of ourselves. We don’t have time to give poetic advice.

“It is true that we Malays are polite and courteous, but we must translate our fight through firm action,” she said.

Her father’s chief contender for the Umno presidency will be Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, who formally announced his candidacy yesterday.

The Star reported today, however, that outgoing youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin is considering a last-minute shot for the top post, despite previously stating that he would be gunning for the vice-presidency. 

Also eyeing the post is little-known businessperson Rahmat Azim Abdul Aziz, who blogs under the pen name ‘Mat Umno’.

The nominations for party president will close later today.

In a later posting on Instagram, Nurulhidayah said she was offering herself as a candidate for Wanita Umno exco.