PETALING JAYA: With elections in six states less than a week away, many among the Umno grassroots are more concerned with what the future holds for the party after the polls, two top leaders said.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the duo claimed many grassroot members are jaded and morale is low despite it being “election season”.
“The reality is that many grassroots leaders and members are not thrilled about the prospect of working with DAP and Pakatan Harapan in general,” said one national level leader.
He said the “mood on the ground” this time around is very different compared to when the party was on the campaign trail in the lead up to the Johor and Melaka state elections which Barisan Nasional won.
“It may be easy for the leaders at the top, but it is a different story on the ground. We have been enemies for decades. It’s too soon to expect acceptance, let alone chemistry.”
The source said this was why many grassroots members may opt not to vote on Aug 12 or even vote in favour of Perikatan Nasional to punish the Umno leadership.
“The main question many in Umno have is what will happen after the polls if the party does not do well,” he said.
The source said even PN was counting on a “change of dynamics” within Umno after the polls.
“I think this is why in their campaign, they’ve been pulling their punches against Umno, opting to attack the government more than Umno itself, because they also want votes from Umno members,” he said.
The source said that if Umno does poorly in the polls, there will be a clamour for change at the top.
“If there is none, then you will see changes at the bottom. You may see a disintegration at the grassroots level with people quitting and so on.”
Meanwhile, another youth leader who declined to be named said it was clear that PN was dominating the campaigning especially on social media.
“We’re in disarray on the ground. On social media, PN is still dominating. So things don’t look that good except maybe in Negeri Sembilan and a few seats in Selangor, Penang and Kedah.
“At the grassroots level, there is dissatisfaction over the party leadership and having to work with DAP.”
The leader said if Umno does poorly in the six state elections, it will serve as a wakeup call for the party to get its act together.
“We lost in GE15, but we don’t behave like we did. Where are the changes? Where are the reforms? It looks like we are doing the same thing and expecting different results.”
However, the leader said it was too late for Umno to turn its fortunes around though it would depend on what happens after the polls.
“Another bad outing is expected but the big question is what’s next? This will be the key issue, especially for those who aren’t the president’s (Ahmad Zahid Hamidi) men.”
Umno is contesting 107 of the 245 state seats in Selangor, Penang, Kedah, Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan and Terengganu in the Aug 12 polls. - FMT
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