'My way or highway' era over - Umno Youth chief tells Dr M

An Umno leader has urged former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad to face the party in the upcoming polls, instead of demonising it via online statements.

"If Tun (Mahathir) feels that Umno is ‘evil’ and has to be defeated, let's meet at the 15th general election. Let the people decide.

"That's Tun's right, as how it is our right to offer loyalty and stability. There is no need to badmouth Umno and portray all its members as ugly, stupid and corrupt," Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan (above) said in a Facebook post.

Shahril was responding to Mahathir's statement yesterday that former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak's imprisonment would not “cleanse” Umno of its corruption-tainted image.

The nonagenarian claimed that corruption in the party has cascaded down to the grassroots level.

Hence, Mahathir said Umno should be “completely rejected” in the 15th general election and be replaced with another party that champions the Malays.

While he respected Mahathir for leading Umno and the country in the past, it did not mean party members will take all of Mahathir's insults lying down.

"I understand that Tun is renowned for his sharp tongue, both locally and in the global arena. But I hope he would not lob such disrespect at an institution he once led.

"Let's meet at the polls. The era of ‘my way or the highway’ may have been relevant in the 1980s and 1990s, but now, times have changed," said Shahril.

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