Umno's branch and division AGMs brought forward

Umno president Najib Abdul Razak today announced that Umno branch and divisional annual general meetings have been brought forward and will be held as early as March.

However, Najib said this was not an indication that a general election was around the corner.

Najib, who is also prime minister, said the party's supreme council had decided last Friday that the branches would meet from March 17 to April 30, while the division meetings would be held from July 7 to Aug 26.

"I would like to stress that we should not make assumptions or speculations that the earlier dates for the meetings this year is an indication of the 14th general election.

"There is nothing extraordinary for the annual meetings to be held in the beginning or towards end of the year," said Najib in a post on his blog.

The Umno branches and divisional meetings are usually held in the third quarter of the year, leading up to its annual general assembly in November or December.

Busy third quarter

Najib explained that the meetings were brought forward as there are many scheduled events later in the year, including the Southeast Asian Games in August, which is hosted by Malaysia, and the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations in June.

"However, I want all of Umno and BN's machinery to not be lackadaisical or take our duties lightly.

"We must always remain focused on our delivery, fullfil our promises, spend time to meet and listen to the pulse of the people, what are their wants and needs," he said.

At the same time, Najib also expressed hoped that the meetings would be used as a platform for Umno to resolve any differences which could bring negativity to the party.

The current mandate for Najib's administration would only expire in 2018 but talk of snap polls have been rife since late last year. -Mkini