Umno should be considered as a government-in-waiting instead of an opposition party, according to its deputy president Mohamad Hasan.
He said this is how Umno's members should view the party, which was defeated in the May 9 general election after six decades in power.
Furthermore, the former Negeri Sembilan menteri besar noted that the current political situation is unpredictable.
“The current government can be considered a 'hung' parliament, where no one party has the actual majority to govern the nation.
“We must see Umno as a government-in-waiting. We are competitors of the government and we must compete. If we consider ourselves opposition, the opposition's task is just to oppose.
“But if we see Umno as a competitor to the current government, this means we would want to always compete... we would be at the same level or ahead of our competitor,” he added.
To achieve this, Mohamad said efforts must be undertaken to strengthen the party and the focus should be on formulating strategies to win the next general election.
Speaking at a discussion organised by Umno Online, the Rantau assemblyperson urged members not to throw in the towel following their defeat in the 14th general election.
“In 14 general elections, we won 13 times... Just because of one defeat, we become disheartened? Compared to the opposition, which lost 13 times and just won once.
“So Umno members, do not lose heart.
“We have a history, we have a track record and we have thinkers in the party. What is important now is how we pool this strength and how we delegate different tasks and roles,” he added.
Umno's 72nd annual general assembly is scheduled to start tomorrow. This would be its first as an opposition party.
