YOURSAY | 'The moderates in Umno should just leave and form a new party.'

PAS-Umno pact not working, says ex-Umno Youth No 2

Picture Fu: Unlike Umno leaders such as party secretary-general Annuar Musa and those of his ilk, former Youth deputy chief Khairul Azwan Harun seems to be speaking with some common sense.

With the kind of racial and religious rhetoric spewed by the right wing of the party, I will not vote for BN in a million years, not even if Pakatan Harapan screws it up royally. The BN formula is still relevant only if you take the middle, moderate path. However, since they screwed up in the last 61 years, they’ll have to wait patiently for the next 10 to 15 years to see how Harapan fares.

Politics is a game that requires patience, so Umno needs to behave first – and consistently behave – and then we shall see if they are sincere, and decide if we can give them a chance, again.

This requires time. So start your effort to unite all races in the country instead of spewing venom all the time. Khairul Azwan can start the ball rolling. People like Annuar and company cannot do it; they have no vision, only ugly rhetoric.

Unspin: If Umno was to get back to the centre-right (instead of the far-right), I think it has a chance in the next general election – considering the fact that Harapan is not exactly united due to the weak link in PKR. But Umno's reform has to start immediately, so that its leaders can walk the talk and show that there is an alternative to Harapan in the next election.

The Sounds: Pointless talk, Khairul Azwan. Just leave Umno with your former Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin and form a new party. You have to work extremely hard, maybe win a very slim minority seat in 10 years’ time. Still better than staying in a half-dead party.

Abd Karim: Khairul Azwan seems like an honourable man, but alas, Umno rejected him in their polls.

Hot Potato: The centrists were kicked out of PAS now it's being repeated in Umno. The defeated politicians are now singing a single tune, it goes race, race and race.

New Horizon: The small group of newly elected Umno leaders, together with the Abdul Hadi Awang faction in PAS, are trying their best to stay relevant in the context of new Malaysia.

They know their political days are numbered, but are giving the impression to the rank and file that together, they can regain support to oust Harapan. They keep on believing that their own members are blindly loyal or stupid, but they will finally wake up one morning to find the political world in Malaysia has changed.

There is plenty of hope for the likes of Khairy and Khairul Azwan in Umno and the more moderate leaders in PAS.

Anonymous Observer: So long as the older generation, who are mostly conservative, dominate the policy-making leadership in the opposition, particularly in Umno and PAS, chances for revival are slim. The socio-economic framework of our society has started to transform, but not the feudalistic mindset of these politicians.

Hopeful123: The Malays now are better informed and are willing to work hard for a better Malaysia, they don't need crutches or the New Economic Policy any more. They have realised that Umno has been making use of their kindness and gullibility to enrich themselves while throwing some unwanted crumbs to them.

As the saying goes, you can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time. It’s payback time for Umno-BN.

Anonymous_b497ffa7: The rakyat is wiser now. No more being fooled by Umno's "traditional method of campaigning and focusing on issues relevant to Malays and Muslims".

Now, the rakyat realises most of the problems faced by Malays and non-Malays were and are caused by the corrupt and self-enriching Umno. No doubt, Umno exploited the divide and rule policy, ketuanan, etc, to enrich themselves.

They gladly stole and robbed, without compunction, from normal and poor Malays, while putting the blame on non-Malays. Many of these multi-millionaires and billionaires are still running free and enjoying their ill-gotten gains while the nation is mired in an RM1 trillion debt hole.

Anonymous 1802761448130592: It will be extremely tough for Umno to win the trust of Malaysians again. Mere verbal rhetoric will not work. Deeds need to be sincere and consistent, especially in keeping bigoted leaders like Annuar, Lokman Noor Adam, Jamal Md Yunos and Tajuddin Abdul Rahman in check.

I, for one, will never trust Umno ever again with the likes of such persons holding positions in Umno. Sensible leaders like Khairy, Khairul Azwan and other moderates may persuade us to one day support Umno again, but it will be sometime in the future. One bitten, twice shy; thrice bitten better die.

Roger 5201: Khairul Azwan is right in saying Umno needs to revisit its moderate and centrist ways, ones that earn respect from non-Malays, not fear. While PAS is preoccupied with Islam, Umno is still very much preoccupied with Malay supremacy, but how does one justify Islamic kleptocracy?

Anonymous_3e12: Umno should look to DAP to learn how to reinvent itself. Try to recruit young members with potential and from good universities, like DAP did with Yeo Bee Yin, Ong Kian Ming and Tony Pua – not dodgy doctorate holders like party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Multiracial: Finally someone in Umno talks sense. For BN to have any chance in future elections, all existing racist and corrupt leaders in Umno need to be replaced by leaders like Khairul Azwan. Not just that, all the existing leaders in MCA and MIC have got to go too.

The current leaders have failed and they need to be responsible for their failures and step aside to allow younger and moderate leaders to take over. Hopefully, these leaders can go one step further than Harapan, ie, form a single, truly multiracial party under BN.

If they can do that, they will be a real threat to Harapan, which at this moment still has some leaders who have not moved beyond race and religion. If any of the politicians learn anything from GE14, they are bound to be rejected.

Malaysians are against racism, extremism, mixing religion with politics, and most of all, against corruption. We want leaders who love Malaysia more than they love themselves, and sincerely want to build a better Malaysia for all.

Mano: When in power, Umno leaders from top to bottom had the singular objective of skimming public money through various means. All which were done not for the benefit of the country, but for themselves and their cronies. Now, with no gravy train, their only capital is to beat up the imaginary ghosts purportedly attacking race, religion and royalty. But where are the intelligent and truly spiritual Malays?

Mission Accomplished: The earlier Umno and PAS realise Malaysians of all races no longer have the appetite for racists and bigots, the better their chances for survival will be in this increasingly mature political arena. Obstinate stupidity is not an answer to a moderate rainbow country.

Proud As a Malaysian: Despite our support for Harapan, we do sincerely hope that there is a strong and good alternative opposition to act as an effective check and balance, as power always leads to ultimate corruption.

PAS and Umno are instead resorting to cultivating fear among Malays and Muslims with lies and distorted views, instead of constructive criticism and providing effective alternative solutions or policies to create a healthy tension.

Non-Malays have virtually given up on MCA and MIC for their failure to voice out on the huge corruption perpetrated by former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and the rest of BN, as well as the continuous racial sentiment stirred up by Umno.

Without changes in MCA and MIC leadership, and an effort to rebuild confidence in their leadership, those parties are on a death spiral, especially if they still try to stick to Umno, which is now forging an indirect alliance with PAS.

We will need a strong and promising next generation of leaders from Umno, MCA, Gerakan and MIC to look into forming an alternative opposition bloc to provide a meaningful alternative to Harapan and corrupted BN component parties, along with an indirect partner of the Hadi-led PAS.

Khairy and other youthful leaders should seriously look into this alternative, and not to stick to the sinking ship of Umno, especially as there is little evidence that the leadership has caught up with reality.

Anonymous Kamus: What do you expect, Khairul Azwan? You think 1MDB and the scandals are all settled? Someone has to see the inside of a cell first. Wait 15, 20 years, perhaps then you’ll have a chance.

Deval29: There is some real 'talent' in Umno, but sadly it's currently being suppressed by the remnants of Najib's band of thieves at the helm. I do believe that Umno should be looking after the Malays, as should Harapan, but they need to be doing so through a sincerely motivated plan that will produce genuine results, and not just via maintained protectionism, held in place through racial incitement and threats. And it should not be to the detriment of others.

The sleeping giant Umno could, if it really wanted to, be the only party that can make a real difference to Malaysia, uniting and taking us all to the next level – but not with the current leadership.

The Red Baron: The recent Umno-PAS union is a dream union made in heaven, especially for those concerned that their race and religion is doomed just because some non-Malays were appointed finance minister, attorney general and chief justice.

If they are to be believed, 21 million people are shaking in their boots by the mere appointment of just three people. But why worry, when you have Umno to take care of race and religion in this life and PAS to take care of the afterlife?

Fair Play: Khairul Azwan, think about this. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results – like Umno’s ‘marriage’ with PAS.

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