Umno must be open and more democratic and improve all weaknesses according to the aspirations of its members and voters, said Umno presidential candidate Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah.

He said every view raised by the grassroots level especially the lower rung group needed to be scrutinised by the leader at every level so that it could be the basis of policy formulation and so on for the party's struggle.

"They (members, voters) do not want to hear from top to bottom anymore but rather from bottom to the top, therefore every view raised from grassroots and the lower rung group should be carefully monitored by the leader of each level.

"I've been to Sabah, Johor, Melaka, Pahang, Perlis, Penang and Kedah. Many have envisioned the aspiration that we (Umno) are more open, transparent and have proper governance, not that we did not do it before but that is what our grassroots want, "he said.

He said this to reporters after a Friendly Session with Umno presidential candidate Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah at Hotel Impiana in Ipoh today, which was also attended by state Umno Liaison committee chairperson Zambry Abd Kadir.

Meanwhile, the Gua Musang member of parliament (MP) said the purpose of Umno's struggle should not be touched upon as it had remained as it was established in 1946.

He said Umno's credibility and integrity needed to be improved so that they would not be questioned by the people.

Commenting on the actions of two MPs in Perak who quit Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN), Tengku Razaleigh said he did not rule out the possibility of meeting them even though their actions betrayed their mandate.

"We do not want this to happen where if 54 areas are mandated by the people, the 54 areas need to remain so that the voices of the people in the area can be heard, but unfortunately they take the action to leave the party.

"So that's their responsibility, not us (Umno) because we've put them (there) for the people but they do not live up to that commitment," he said.

Yesterday, Bukit Gantang MP Syed Abu Hussin Hafiz Syed Abdul Fasal announced leaving Umno and BN while Bagan Serai MP Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali also took the same action on Sunday.

- Bernama