FORMER Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Mohamad Hasan wants to take on the position of Umno deputy president, saying he wants to rebuild the party from bottom up.

The Negeri Sembilan Umno liaison committee chairman said the deputy president is the one in charge of party management and he believes he is best suited to manage Umno.

“In Umno, the deputy president’s post is important as he chairs the management committee.

“Umno needs to be managed well. And, in any general election or by-election, the deputy president will lead the charge as the party election director,” he said in an interview with local daily New Straits Times.

He added that he threw in his name for deputy president as current deputy, Hishammuddin Hussien, has decided against running.

Mohamad Hasan also said it is important for Umno to get rid of money politics and own up to past mistakes, done when the party was in power.

“We were in denial syndrome and people were restless. Umno members need to be wise in making their choices.

“If money politics and other advantage-based politics keep recurring in the party, then it is very unfortunate,” he said.

Umno can also make a comeback in the next election as Malays still favour of the party but voted against them in 14th general election because of several leaders, Mohamad Hassan said.

“Umno’s future lies in the hands of Malays and I am confident that the Malays will not throw Umno away. They are not angry with the party, but only with some leaders,” he said, adding the party should stay true to its principle of championing Malay rights, the position of Islam and Rulers in Malaysia.

Mohamad Hasan also said there were encouraging signs that more people were aware of the trouble Umno is in and have come forward to help.

“The impact of the defeat has resulted in an increase in the number of attendees at Umno’s branch meetings. This is a good sign. It has been way better than before the election.

“This shows that the Malays have slowly regained their spirit and I am confident that if we are united, Umno will rise again,” he said.

Mohamad Hasan noted that Umno already has reinvented itself by allowing young leaders to contest for the top post and senior leaders wanting to work with the youth to rebuild the party.

“I can work with anybody because my sole focus is to rebuild the party. We must have leaders who can help bring Umno to the top again.

“Many young party members have offered themselves to contest a spot in Umno’s Supreme Council. This is also a good development,” he said.

Mohamad Hassan is contesting for deputy president against Umno Supreme Council member Annuar Musa.

This comes after Umno acting deputy president Hishammuddin Hussein’s announcement that he won’t be contesting for any post.

Hishammuddin, who is former defence minister, is the son of former Umno president and prime minister Hussein Onn, who was in turn the son of the party’s first president and co-founder Onn Jaafar.

He has taken on the duties of the deputy president after his predecessor, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, became the interim president two weeks ago, following the resignation of then Najib Razak, who took responsibility for Umno’s losses in GE14.

The Malay party retained only 54 out of the 88 parliamentary seats it won in GE13. The Barisan Nasional coalition it leads did not win enough seats to form the federal government.

The historic loss has floored the 71-year-old party and has triggered some soul-searching within its ranks, with some members wondering if the slate of current leaders had the charisma or ideas to revive the party.

As a result, the party’s polls this year will be the most fiercely fought as every member, from former ministers to the lowest branch members, want a shot at reviving the party. – June 11, 2018