Bersatu will endure post-Mahathir era: Muhyiddin
INTERVIEW | Bersatu will endure even after the end of its founder's era, party president Muhyiddin Yassin has said.
During a special interview on Monday, he said Bersatu is about the struggle and what it stands for instead of who their leaders are.
"It will not change as long as the sun and the moon exist. As long as the stars are shining and flowers are blooming, our struggle will remain on course," he said, indirectly referring to the party's flower logo.
Muhyiddin said no political leaders could remain at the helm of their parties forever and so is the case with Bersatu.
"I will be leaving this party, too, one day to new leaders. And what would the party do then? Will it stop when a leader is no longer there?
"That is not perjuangan. The party will continue irrespective of who is the leader. What is important is what the party stands for.
"We will not change our course. We must be consistent and have a clear direction so that the people will have confidence and thus continue to support us. That is what is important," he elaborated during the interview held in conjunction with Bersatu's three-day annual general meeting (AGM) which begins today.
Muhyiddin touched on Bersatu's direction after being asked about its future after the era of its chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad who founded the party together with Muhyiddin and several others.
Muhyiddin, who is also the home minister, said future leaders of Bersatu would have a strong party foundation which had been set by Mahathir as their guide.
The party, he added, was also not short of young, potential leaders whom party members could depend upon to continue Bersatu's struggle.
Citing Bersatu Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman as an example of one of the promising leaders the party had today, Muhyiddin said they have many more in the pipeline to take Bersatu to greater heights...
INTERVIEW | Bersatu will endure even after the end of its founder's era, party president Muhyiddin Yassin has said.
During a special interview on Monday, he said Bersatu is about the struggle and what it stands for instead of who their leaders are.
"It will not change as long as the sun and the moon exist. As long as the stars are shining and flowers are blooming, our struggle will remain on course," he said, indirectly referring to the party's flower logo.
Muhyiddin said no political leaders could remain at the helm of their parties forever and so is the case with Bersatu.
"I will be leaving this party, too, one day to new leaders. And what would the party do then? Will it stop when a leader is no longer there?
"That is not perjuangan. The party will continue irrespective of who is the leader. What is important is what the party stands for.
"We will not change our course. We must be consistent and have a clear direction so that the people will have confidence and thus continue to support us. That is what is important," he elaborated during the interview held in conjunction with Bersatu's three-day annual general meeting (AGM) which begins today.
Muhyiddin touched on Bersatu's direction after being asked about its future after the era of its chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad who founded the party together with Muhyiddin and several others.
Muhyiddin, who is also the home minister, said future leaders of Bersatu would have a strong party foundation which had been set by Mahathir as their guide.
The party, he added, was also not short of young, potential leaders whom party members could depend upon to continue Bersatu's struggle.
Citing Bersatu Youth chief Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman as an example of one of the promising leaders the party had today, Muhyiddin said they have many more in the pipeline to take Bersatu to greater heights.
"So I am not too concerned about successors for the party leadership, they will come. There are youths whom we trust and there are those in the supreme council who have not been given positions as yet.
"Future leaders is important because we want the party to rejuvenate and be energised by young people. The veteran leaders will retire when the time comes, including me and Tun (Mahathir) and the young ones will take over."
Change is imminent
Speaking about leadership changes, Muhyiddin also said that it is imminent that democratic parties like Bersatu will undergo changes in their leadership.
Insinuating that such changes do not even have to wait for the veterans to voluntarily step aside, he said party members could choose whomever they want as their leaders.
"Next year we will have party elections and we practise a democratic system. So, whoever (the members) want to choose to hold any post (in the party), it is up to the delegates.
"It is next year when we will go through an election process. So there might be changes [...] definitely there will be changes.
"Because when we practise democracy, it means we will go through the process of change. It will happen at all levels including in Bersatu Youth and Srikandi (the party' s young women's wing). I believe the party members know better about who they want.
"If they feel that a leader is no longer needed and should be replaced, then they will decide, not me," he said when answering a question about speculation that he might be the party's next chairperson while Mahathir's son Mukhriz could be the next president.
Bersatu, or its full name Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, was formed in September 2016 by Mahathir, Muhyiddin and several other former Umno leaders who left Umno after losing confidence in its struggle and certain leaders.
Together with their three allies in Pakatan Harapan namely PKR, DAP and Amanah, Bersatu created history when they defeated the Umno-led BN in the May 9 general election this year to form the federal government.
However, after having ditched Umno, Bersatu is now being seen accepting into its fold former Umno leaders, a trend which has set off alarm bells over what some describe Bersatu turning into a second version of Umno.
Rejecting this notion, Muhyiddin stressed that this was not the case though he had acknowledged the fact that former Umno leaders had been accepted into Bersatu.
Not 'Umno 2.0'
"This is not true. I have said repeatedly that this is Bersatu. It is different not only in its name but also by our party constitution which is the basis of our struggle and which never mentions Umno.
"(Indeed) I am a former Umno member and so are Mahathir and Mukhriz. But we moved forward leaving that party in our past. It is an expired party which can no longer fulfil its original struggle to defend religion, race and nation.
"There has been much damage inflicted by corrupt practices and power abuse. So we left it and formed Bersatu," he stressed.
Muhyiddin added that while their faces might look similar to the faces in Umno, he would note that Bersatu is a party with a rejuvenated political struggle.
He said the large number of former Umno members and leaders joining them showed that they are starting to realise that perhaps Umno was something they could not defend anymore.
"Some of them may want to join us, not to get anything but to be together with this new group that we formed in Bersatu.
"We are open to anyone who wishes to join us and they can as long as they abide by our constitution, are loyal to the leadership and are willing to join in the struggle to make a better Malaysia.
"That is why we accepted them. Nevertheless, we also have guidelines when accepting new members so that people will not brand us an 'Umno 2.0'," he said.
Muhyiddin said the party is different from Umno in the sense that they practised different approaches towards transparency and corruption.
"Umno never mentioned about corruption, (but) we are against it to the core. We are determined on good governance which we practise in the government.
"Many cabinet decisions (under Harapan) also followed what I had mentioned earlier that being rule of law, transparency, anti-corruption and also actions had been taken against corrupt practices."
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