Najib says needs public mandate to reform Umno

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 7 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak admitted today that his party needs to change but pointed out that he needs a mandate from voters in order to reform Umno.

“If I want to reform the party, I need a mandate from the people. Without the mandate from the electorate how can I reform the party?” he told the Malay Mail in an interview published today.

Reforming Umno has proven to be a monumental task despite the party’s and Barisan Nasional’s (BN) flagging popularity, particularly in urban areas.

The Umno president has been pushing a reform agenda which included the repeal of security laws considered draconian and the push for a more multi-racial agenda.

But conservative forces within the party, especially those linked with Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, have resisted change and have pushed a more Malay-centric platform.

Mindful of Dr Mahathir’s continued influence, Najib(picture) has been careful not to alienate the former PM who had contributed to BN’s worst electoral performance in Election 2008 when he campaigned against the administration of Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

But ahead of key national elections due next year, Prime Minister Najib said he was pleading for voters to grant him the mandate to continue his reform policies that can spur Malaysia forward for the greater good even as he acknowledges his party and the ruling BN coalition’s sluggishness towards change.

The 59-year-old, who was bumped up into office after Abdullah stepped down a year after the BN’s worst performance at the polls, said he needs a strong mandate if Malaysia is to move up in the global economic and political chain and be on par with high-income nations and urged voters to think of the country’s greater good.

“With this mandate, a strong mandate from the people, I will deliver what I promised,” he said.

“This is not just about GE13, it’s about transforming the nation and I’m committed to it.”

Najib appeared to admit that the BN and its main party Umno had over the years lost popular support due to weaknesses within, but urged voters to give him the chance to create the necessary changes.

“If I want to reform the party, I need a mandate from the people. Without the mandate from the electorate how can I reform the party?” he told the English-language daily.

He pledged in the interview that with a strong mandate, he believed BN would totally transform to reflect the public’s wishes.

“I’m their leader and if they are my supporters, they must also believe in me because what I’m doing is not for me. It’s for the rakyat.

“If you don’t change, you will be changed.”

The Umno president also allayed fears that BN would eventually return to the “bad, old ways,” pointing out that the political landscape had changed with a voting public that was now more aware and empowered.