Umno VP: Party can't use race, religion in 21st century

UMNO AGM | Umno today can no longer use race and religion as weapons to beat their political competition, said party vice-president Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

He said this is because such sentiments are no longer appropriate in this day and age.

Because of that, he said the party needed to heed president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s call to work diligently and develop the people through education.

“We can no longer use race and religion as weapons to win the competition. Such sentiments are no longer suitable for Malays in the 21st century.

“We want Malays who are wise and to be the initiators of a new revolution for the advancement of Malaysia’s industry and economy.”

Khaled (above), who is also the defence minister, said Umno must help to make the current Malay generation more competitive.

“We must consolidate all our efforts so that the agenda of the knowledge, skills, and competitiveness of the Malay nation is not taken lightly,” he stressed.

The former higher education minister also said Umno should not leave educating the Malays to the government.

“Umno in its capacity as a party must be part of an important partnership with the government to advance education and the nation’s competitiveness,” he said.

Cooperating since Merdeka

Meanwhile, Khaled also urged Umno to act based on the current political reality, including by cooperating with other parties.

“It is not a new thing or a decision made out of desperation.

“On the other hand, this approach is what Umno has advocated since this party began to rule our country and nation at the beginning of independence.

“From Umno’s point of view, we created BN and managed the country by consensus for more than six decades,” he said.

Khaled added that Umno should not force other parties to join BN.

“(Being from different coalitions) doesn’t mean we can’t work together well. We can copy various strategies, but we still continue to defend the original goal,” he said.

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