Ahmad Zahid defends UMNO’s GE15 strategy, pledges to win over youths at next polls

KUALA LUMPUR: United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has defended his party’s strategy during the 15th General Election (GE15), urging members to stop finding faults and instead think of the way forward.

In his policy speech at the UMNO General Assembly on Friday (Jan 13),  Ahmad Zahid also laid out why UMNO and the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition it leads chose to form a unity government with Pakatan Harapan (PH) instead of Perikatan Nasional (PN). 

He claimed that PN had sabotaged his party by obtaining statutory declarations from 10 BN MPs in its initial attempt to form the government after the Nov 19 general election. 

Looking ahead at the party’s future prospects in the next general election, Ahmad Zahid said UMNO must “capture the imagination” of Malaysia’s youths, as they will represent a wave of new voters with wider and diverse political lenses.

The UMNO president began his closely-watched speech with a post-mortem of his party’s dismal performance at GE15, where it captured only 30 out of the 178 seats it contested, far behind PH and PN.

“This loss has invited different views, criticism and attacks, but what’s important is how we forge our way forward,” he said.

“We can continue to debate this, but we will not move forward. We will keep finding faults. With that said, don’t deny the party’s efforts in facing this general election, as it has done the best it could.”

Ahmad Zahid said UMNO had prepared its machinery, logistics and finances, and started the process of choosing candidates following discussions with other BN component parties.

He defended UMNO’s strategy of fielding new faces amid criticism that this reduced their chances of winning, saying it was necessary to refresh the line-up and dispel the notion that it is a party of  “warlords”.

Also as part of UMNO’s GE15 preparations, Ahmad Zahid revealed that the party’s top leaders had come to the conclusion that no single party would likely be able to form the government, and thus discussions with other parties would be needed.

At the time, he said BN and UMNO only had two choices: Work with PN’s Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) together with parties in Sabah and Sarawak, or just with the parties in East Malaysia.

“To that end, it is not fair to say that we had an early agreement with Pakatan Harapan to form the government together. We did not have a secret agreement,” he said.

WHY PH OVER PN?

Ahmad Zahid went on to explain why UMNO chose PH over PN, saying that BN met both coalitions separately to discuss fundamental issues like Malay-Muslim rights and how the government should not be identified as belonging to a single party.

“Pakatan Harapan said in a written response that it agreed, but Perikatan Nasional responded that it was considering these issues,” he said.

PN, subsequently, rejected the king’s offer for the formation of a unity government as it claimed that it had the support of enough MPs, said Ahmad Zahid, adding that this support actually included the 10 BN MPs who had sided with PN chairman Muhyiddin Yassin in forming the new  government.

“This is despite prior agreements and statutory declarations (by all BN candidates) that all seats won  belong to the party and not the individuals,” he added.

The UMNO president told reporters on Thursday that he has since “forgiven” those BN MPs, although he said he will continue to monitor them together with the party’s disciplinary committee.

“They are back with us again,” he said on Friday to some applause. “I have forgiven them, but it is hard for me to forget their actions.”

Ahmad Zahid said UMNO ultimately chose to work with PH in forming the unity government as the coalition which won the most seats, in line with the people’s mandate.

This is despite a resolution at the previous UMNO General Assembly not to work with PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim or its component party, the Democratic Action Party.

“Once we made this decision, some members brought up that resolution. But this group failed to say that the General Assembly also decided against working with Bersatu,” Ahmad Zahid said, referring to PN component party Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia led by Mr Muhyiddin. 

Ahmad Zahid said he hopes his clarifications would put a “full stop” to the post-election debate, noting that the UMNO leadership polls - which must be held by May - are looming.

“I have heard many views that touch on election issues, specifically regarding the posts of the president and deputy president of the party. Some want these two posts to be contested, and there is no shortage of those who don’t,” he said.

Those who prefer the two roles remain uncontested include UMNO deputy president Mohamad Hasan and its women’s wing chief Noraini Ahmad.

Mr Mohamad said the polls could cause divisions within UMNO, while Dr Noraini said a non-contest would give the leaders space to strengthen the party.

An UMNO Supreme Council meeting on Thursday evening was expected to discuss this issue, but council members told the media afterwards they only discussed matters related to the General Assembly. 

Ahmad Zahid has maintained that he is confident of defending his position, telling potential challenger Khairy Jamaluddin on Thursday that he was “ready to fight”.

In Friday’s speech, Ahmad Zahid said that he was confident in the democratic process and would leave it to the delegates to decide on the issue.

“Nevertheless, I believe that UMNO members can decide which is glass and which is gem,” he said, using a Malay idiom referring to the ability of UMNO’s members in choosing the right leaders during the party election.   

WOOING YOUTHS IN NEXT ELECTION

Speaking about UMNO’s prospects in the next general election not due till 2027, Ahmad Zahid said that GE15 showed how voters made their choices based on sentiments and perceptions, instead of  the middle ground.

“Value- and track record-based politics as well as a pledge to build a prosperous country with a strong economy are all sidelined,” he said.

“On the other hand, voters - especially first-time voters - are flooded with racial sentiments and negative perceptions.”

Ahmad Zahid said UMNO must be ready to woo about 500,000 new voters each year until the next election, pointing out that these young voters will think differently amid a fast–changing political landscape.

“Issues of development will not be a consideration. Their judgment will not be based on achievements of the past,” he said.

“We need to be able to capture the imagination of these youths. We need to understand how they think. While we try to get their support, we must also be responsible for painting them as an important source of the country’s potential.”

Ahmad Zahid said the party must also balance the needs of the country with the interests of its citizens, and come up with new ideas at every level to ensure it remains relevant in the current political reality.

“I am very confident that with our determination to renew our party in the future, we have the potential to recapture a big portion of the 74 seats we lost,” he added.