Najib wants to hug King Salman to show his gratitude

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, during a gathering of Umno grassroots in Ampang last night, professed his desire to hug Saudi Arabian King Raja Salman Abdulaziz Al Saud.

Touting his success in securing an increase in the haj quota during the monarch's visit to Malaysia in February, Najib said he wanted to express his gratitude to the Saudi ruler.

"Tomorrow, when I leave for Riyadh, I want to hug King Salman again when I see him for providing Malaysia with a special quota.

"Many people can now perform their haj because of Umno's struggle," he told the audience at the programme titled ‘Umno Helps the People’.

Najib also touted Umno's legacy in aiding Muslims to perform their pilgrimage obligations.

"Who set up Tabung Haji? We provide subsidy (for those performing the haj). This does not include the 1MDB's haj programme, which is free for village chiefs and mosque heads," he said.

The quota for Malaysians to perform the haj was increased from 27,900 people to 30,200 people this year.

The increase came after negotiations between Najib and King Salman during the latter's state visit to Malaysia.

‘Allah grants us victory’

Najib said this was one of many Umno contributions since its inception, and touched on the party's 71st anniversary celebrations last week.

"Celebrating Umno's 71st anniversary is not just about the leadership being in power but it also represents Umno's defence of the people for 71 years in Malaysia.

"If we want to list down all of the contributions of the government and Umno, it will be very difficult as there have been too many.

"We don't help people according to (election) seasons but we do it year in and year out, as old as Umno is," the Umno president said.

He slammed the opposition for purportedly only serving the people when the election is near.

"The opposition talks and slanders a lot, but does not contribute.

"Umno does the opposite, which is why Allah grants us victory in the elections," Najib said.- Mkini