Joining Malaysia’s unity government is proof of party maturity, says UMNO women wing chief at general assembly

KUALA LUMPUR: The United Malays National Organisation's (UMNO) participation in the unity government is proof that UMNO is a mature party that can adapt to any situation, said party women’s wing chief Noraini Ahmad.

Delivering her policy speech on Thursday (Jun 8) on the second day of UMNO’s 2023 general assembly, Dr Noraini said: “This collaboration proves that UMNO is a mature party that can adapt to the current situation and circumstances.”

She noted that the collaboration in the unity government shows that UMNO and the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which the party is a part of, are able to “put the interests of the country before ego and dignity”.  

Dr Noraini added that cooperation in the unity government needs to be accepted with an open heart as UMNO has a responsibility to ensure political, economic and social stability in Malaysia. 

“Remember, we are no longer a dominant party … We have to compromise. For the sake of bringing victory to the unity government, which we carry together,” she said. 

While noting that UMNO will not be contesting in all seats during the upcoming six states election, Dr Noraini said that the party has to ensure that BN and other parties in the unity government will win their respective seats. 

The upcoming state elections in Malaysia will be held in six states - namely Kedah, Kelantan, Negeri Sembilan, Penang, Selangor and Terengganu - and are expected to happen by August. 

She also noted that the party must accept that it has lost the support of the majority. 

“After heavy defeats in the last two general elections, we all have to accept the fact that this party needs time to come back strong and respectable. 

“We have to accept the fact that even after working hard to develop this country and improving the quality of people's lives, the majority of people no longer support us, as stated by the deputy president (Mr Mohamad Hasan) last night,” said Dr Noraini. 

During the first day of the general assembly on Wednesday night, Mr Mohamad noted that UMNO failed to gain the trust of the 5.8 million new voters in the last election.  

“What is the meaning of all these numbers? It means we must accept and live with the fact that we lost badly,” he said in his policy speech. 

“Therefore, based on the reality and our position, the leadership decided on a political partnership, to form a unity government with Pakatan Harapan (PH)," he added.

After the last general election resulted in a hung parliament, BN became part of the unity government led by PH, together with Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and Parti Warisan. PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim was sworn in as prime minister on Nov 24 last year.

Meanwhile, on political cooperation with PH, UMNO young women's wing chief Nurul Amal Mohd Fauzi reminded party members to take the partnership as an opportunity to learn new things from other coalitions. 

Ms Nurul described the formation of the unity government as a form of political assimilation. She added that she hopes party members who may reject the assimilation will eventually accept it when the time comes. 

“Many countries in the modern world today have practised political assimilation to stabilise the government’s position, which also has a great impact on the development of the country's economy,” she said in her policy speech. 

‘UMNO WILL NEVER BECOME DAP’: YOUTH CHIEF 

In his policy speech on Thursday, UMNO youth chief Muhamad Akmal Saleh said there are concerns among party grassroots that they can no longer champion the special rights of the Malays and the royal institution, among others, due to their collaboration with the Democratic Action Party (DAP) in the unity government. 

“The grassroots are worried that UMNO will have to obey and follow DAP’s lead, when (UMNO is) with DAP,” he said. DAP is a component party of PH. 

To this, Mr Akmal stressed that UMNO decided to join the unity government in order to heed the king’s orders for the country's stability.

“We share administrative space, but not ideologies. We transcend party politics, but we uphold the principles of our struggle.”

Mr Akmal also assured that “UMNO will never become DAP”. 

“(We) have never asked DAP to become UMNO … We want to emphasise: UMNO Youth will make sure that UMNO will never become DAP.” 

He also requested for an apology from DAP leaders for making allegations against the party in the past before heading into the state elections. 

In response to Mr Akmal’s calls, UMNO president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi later said that there was no need to prolong the issue. 

He reportedly said that DAP had agreed to uphold and respect Malay rights and the position of Islam, the Malay rulers and the Malay language when forming the unity government with UMNO. 

“They (DAP) agreed (to the condition), so there isn’t a need to bring up the matter again,” Ahmad Zahid was quoted as saying by Free Malaysia Today. 

A total of 6,341 delegates are expected to attend the UMNO’s assembly this year from Jun 7 to Jun 10.