Senior editor says Utusan must ‘repent’ if it wants to survive

PETALING JAYA: Following a stinging and rare rebuke against former Umno president Najib Razak on Sunday, a senior editor with Umno mouthpiece Utusan Malaysia said the paper should “repent” and re-evaluate its role to ensure its survival.

Assistant editor-in-chief I Mohd Zaini Hassan admitted in his column today that
the Malay-language newspaper had made a mistake all this while.

He said the newspaper should have remained neutral although it is owned by a political party.

“Utusan must change from being the eyes and ears of the party to become the voice of the people,” he wrote.

Zaini said Utusan must return to the “fundamentals of journalism” that the paper had fought for since it was established in 1938.

Zaini, who will be leaving the newspaper on Nov 30 after more than 30 years, said Utusan should be brave enough to criticise its owners and also the present government.

He warned that Utusan would not survive unless it changed its ways.

“What is right is right and what is wrong will remain wrong. What is dirty stays dirty and what is clean is clean.

“If the whole world says it is dirty and you say it is clean, it will mean the end for Utusan,” Zaini said, urging the daily to think of the interests of the Malays.

Zaini ended the column by saying there was still light at the end of the tunnel for the once popular newspaper, urging it to “repent”. He said things would look up although some would say that it was too late.

“That is if Utusan wants to change,” he added.

On Sunday, the paper caused a stir when it rebuked Najib in its editorial, urging the former prime minister to apologise to party members for repeatedly “lying” about the source of the millions of dollars he received in his bank account.

“Najib must apologise to all Umno members because it is this lie that has actually wiped out the people’s confidence in the Barisan Nasional leadership,” it wrote under the “Awang Selamat” pseudonym which represents its editorial voice.

Najib, who is facing multiple charges related to money laundering and corruption, has maintained that some US$700 million he received in 2013 – or the infamous RM2.6 billion transaction – was a donation by the Saudi royal family.

Utusan is facing financial difficulties following Barisan Nasional’s defeat in the May 9 polls. The company has offered a voluntary separation scheme to more than 1,400 employees. - FMT