UMNO STYLE! PARTYING even as they march to war

This is probably the only time of the year when Umno members gather in droves to party hard.

Well, not in the typical sense. I mean, we don't see them waltzing and sashaying into the Putra World Trade Centre to the sound of booming feng tau music or horrible remixes of today's current hits.

Rather, it was because of the festivity air blown in by a number of stalls, expositions and people posing for pictures with their political idols while stretching out their fingers into "V" signs.

At the stalls, among the usual items sold were books, jewelry, trinkets, traditional medicines, keropok sira and of course, clothings.

Furthermore, some may feel that they are taking a stroll between the textile stalls in the Siti Khadijah Market, Kota Baru since most of the traders there are Kelantanese.

Just do not be alarmed if you were greeted by screaming men wrapped in sheer, bright-coloured baju kurungs at the entrance of the mini bazaar on the third floor.

Yes, they literally wrapped themselves in baju kurungs; they are just being men who are clueless about women's clothing. But you have to give them credit for providing an effective sales pitch.

Believe it or not, many of the makcik makcik (motherly-looking women) were somehow entranced by the manly calls to buy those colourful caftans.

Some even bagged heaps of clothing due to their skills in haggling for discounts.

Meanwhile, at the main foyer on the second floor, scores of Wanita Umno members spread and laid copies of old newspapers and sat on the floor before a huge screen displaying the ongoing ssemblies.

Some were engaged in an animated conversation, with their hands up in the air, swerving to the left and right to describe something that had obviously excited them.

The scene where the ladies in red tudungs gather at the same foyer annually from morning until noon is almost a narrative of how an Umno general assembly usually takes place.

"Well I just love to be here. I feel very much a part of the assembly and of course the party," said a Wanita Umno delegate from Penang who only identified herself as "Cik Jem."

But what makes the assembly into something really to shout about?

Other than the time when some would yell out to alert their friends that party president Datuk Seri Najib Razak is making rounds throughout the centre to meet party members, you may want to sit and listen to the debates.

The debates are usually held in different halls with delegates voicingout frank opinions on how the party should, for example, handle controversial issues.

Once or twice some will crack a joke and hold the audience in stitches, while others have their monotonous presentations resulted in a chorus of snores from the crowd.

Of course, the more eccentric members will also use the event as a stepping stone to promote themselves as die hard supporters.

There was this guy seen by a few wearing a fiery red baju melayu, a velvet maroon songkok and covered his samping with a number of pins sold from previous assemblies years ago.

However, he was nowhere to be seen as of yesterday. Perhaps the fashion police were on to him.

The pomp and galore of the assembly reflects Umno’s utmost unity. It is a celebratory in its own, to consolidate their political tenacity which has lasted for almost 70 years now.

It is akin to have a glorious day-long feast, before marching to war the very next morning.

- New Straits Times