Grassroots believe Umno can win all state polls if Najib is free, says son

If Najib Abdul Razak was still with Umno instead of languishing behind bars, the grassroots believe the party will surely win all six upcoming state polls.

The former prime minister’s son Nazifuddin Najib gathered this from conversations with Umno grassroots members.

“Wherever I go at the grassroots level, people say that if Najib was still with us now, confirm we will win all the state polls.

“And that is why in the Umno general assembly we see the support for the movement to free Najib,” Nazifuddin (above, second from right) said in an Umno Online live stream today.

The Langkawi Umno chief said this shows that Najib still enjoys great support from the people.

That is why he believed that helping free his father from prison will also help Umno regain the rakyat’s support in the upcoming state polls.

His sentiments were supported by his siblings, Puteri Umno exco member Nooryana Najwa Najib and Pekan Umno vice-chief Nizar Najib, who were also part of the live stream interview.

Nooryana, who gave a speech at the general assembly earlier today, said she was touched by the party members’ reaction to her speech.

However, she said what the grassroots want is for the efforts to free Najib to bear fruit.

“Many grassroots want to see results so that Najib can get justice and return to us, his family and his Umno family.

Najib’s supporters are not just limited to Umno members either, Nooryana said, as many fence-sitters appreciate what her father has done for the country during his time as prime minister.

Nizar said the opposition has already used this opportunity to play up the issue of Najib still being in jail to sway the latter’s supporters to Perikatan Nasional (PN).

“I know his supporters are disappointed and frustrated that my father has been in jail for almost a year but I am personally still confident that Umno will help and defend my father,” he said.

Umno must address internal issues

At the same time, Nazifuddin acknowledged that Umno can regain its strength even without his father’s presence, but they must recoup and reassess the internal issues in the party.

Regarding Umno’s cooperation with Pakatan Harapan in going toe to toe with PN in the upcoming state polls, he questioned whether Umno needs Harapan or vice versa.

“We actually do not need this unity government issue. Our issue now is internal, where we are undergoing a transformation where we want to show the rakyat that Umno has changed and that we have our own strength to pull in young and new voters,” he said.

Najib is currently serving a 12-year jail sentence after conviction in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case.

Umno has made concerted efforts to free Najib, including applying for a royal pardon for the former prime minister.

During her speech at the general assembly, Nooryana shed tears as she read out a prayer for her father.

She said the former prime minister must be given justice and released immediately.

“Najib is still sad that he cannot be with us today. Let us not forget all the oppression and injustice done against Umno leaders.

“However the judges were arranged, the enforcers were mobilised, main witnesses left uncalled, all sorts of reasons.

“The judge’s conflict of interest can be said to be irrelevant, the trial decision was spread before it ended, and they really wanted Najib to go in (to jail). It was not enough to try to bankrupt Najib.

“Where there is justice, we will fight against all this injustice,” she said while holding back tears.

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