UMNO will be forced to reinvent itself to appeal to young Malaysians now that a new youth-focused party is set to make its debut, said Khairy Jamaluddin.

The former Umno Youth chief said he welcomes the formation of Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman’s political outfit as “competition” to the Barisan Nasional lynchpin.

“This new party will send a signal to my colleagues in Umno,” Khairy, who is also science, technology and innovation minister, told a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

“If we can’t compete with new parties like this one, we won’t be able to get youth’s support.

“I see this as a positive move. Maybe it will quicken the rejuvenation of my ‛old’ party.”

He said millennials need representation, and that democracy is thriving in Malaysia.

“We welcome and embrace this as part of democracy. I feel that the younger generation, the millennials, want to be represented.

“They can be represented through this new party. They can also be represented through existing parties.”

However, the former youth and sports minister said he is not inclined to be part of Syed Saddiq’s party.

“I have already said this (Umno) is my party. This is my party. That means I’ll remain with my party.”

On Monday, Syed Saddiq and 30 youth of various backgrounds held a meeting on the new party’s formation.

The outfit will be called “Muda” – “young” in Malay – and its launch is expected soon. – September 4, 2020.