‘Shahrizat comeback will be an Umno setback’

 

There is talk that a group of grassroots supporters want Shahrizat Jalil to lead Wanita Umno again. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA: Umno will be seen as paying lip service to its pledge to bring changes to the party if Wanita Umno re-elects Shahrizat Jalil as its leader, according to a political analyst.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Shahrizat’s return would send a signal to the masses that Umno “never had a desire to change”.

He said that Umno was in dire need of new blood, not veterans.

“If there were many candidates and yet if an old timer won the post, this gives the perception that Umno doesn’t want to change, and it will lead to a negative perception among voters,” he told FMT.

Melaka Umno women’s chief Haryaty Hamdzah had said recently that a group of grassroots supporters wanted Shahrizat to return as head of the women’s wing, which she led from 2009 to 2018.

Wanita Umno’s current leader is Noraini Ahmad.

Law lecturer Salawati Basir of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said Umno would suffer a setback if the party accepted Shahrizat’s return as Wanita Umno leader.

“We cannot go back to the past. Times have changed,” she said. There was no need for “veterans” to return to lead a wing that has lost its edge.

“Based on her experience, Shahrizat is suitable to be an advisor. It is not right for her to steer the wing. Let a fresh, vocal and brave individual lead the wing.” - FMT