PM SUGGESTS SETTING MAXIMUM TERMS FOR OFFICE-BEARERS

KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Thursday suggested that United Malays National Organisation (Umno) consider
setting a maximum number of terms for its office-bearers as one of the measures
to strengthen the party.

The Umno president also suggested that Umno members be given the right to
choose their leaders, especially for key party positions, to overcome and
eradicate the problem of money politics.

"Perhaps the time has come for us to introduce regulations and procedures
that will enable the party to be administered in a more disciplined and
controlled manner.

"Perhaps, the party needs a mechanism that provides members with greater say
and for us to shed the practices that does not allow those without positions or
material wealth to be fairly treated," he said in his keynote address themed
"The Future and Survival of the Party" at the Umno General Assembly 2008 at
Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) here. Umno is the dominant party in Malaysia's
ruling National Front, and has been in power since independence in 1957.

Umno, he said, should chart a new direction and implement changes to ensure
Umno remained relevant and not "reduced to a forgotten footnote in the pages of
history."

Abdullah is not defending the Umno president's post and will hand over the
post to his deputy Najib Abdul Razak on Saturday.

Abdullah told the sea of Umno delegates that there were views that change
was not necessary.

"They believe that Umno will regain its glory if we revert to the old ways
-- the old order, by restricting the freedom of our citizens and by silencing
their criticism.

"They are of the view that Umno can continue to be in power if they
safeguard the interests of certain individuals and give in to the demands of
certain groups," he said.

Abdullah said however that reverting to the old path would only take the
party to regression and decay and hasten its demise.

Abdullah said that many had voiced the views that Umno needs to change but
what he hoped to hear was for party members themselves to say "I will change."

"It would be a grave travesty if we don't understand that we are Umno and as
long as we don't change, Umno will not change," he said.

While reminding members that Umno was facing heavy credibility tests,
Abdullah also warned them of the weaknesses that could undermine the party.

First, he said, longevity in power had led to complacency, with a number of
Umno leaders were increasingly out of touch with the ordinary people who had
been the source of Umno's strength for so long.

Second, he said, was the relative neglect of the rural community "in our
desire and intent to achieve developed nation status."

"Third, is the ineffectiveness of Umno political programmes in reaching out
to the younger generation.

"Fourth, the prolonged conflict among ourselves, especially while competing
for positions within the party, has eroded the spirit of fraternity among party
members," he said.

The fifth, he said, was materialism which had seeped into the party, making
a number of party members greedy and avaricious, hence creating the negative
perception that Umno was a corrupt party.

He said that the five factors had given Umno enemies a huge political
capital to undermine the party.

"At the same time, a certain group of Malay leaders have opened the door for
Malays and bumiputeras to be attacked or insulted at will," he said.

These continuous and concerted attacks, said Abdullah, had tarnished the
good name of Umno and poisoned the minds of the people to the point that the
public believes and accepts every lie and slander that was made against Umno
without any rational nor objective assessment.


Abdullah said the current situation required the party to reflect and
revisit the basis of its power, and to examine weaknesses and recent missteps.

He outlined six core strengths of Umno since its establishment in 1946, the
first being Umno's sensitivity in understanding and dealing with the problems
and aspirations of the Malays.

"Second, is Umno's ability and success in managing cooperation among the
races and its openness in acknowledging the role and importance of other races
in our country," he said.

Third, he said, was Umno's ability to reconcile competing and contradictory
demands while the fourth was the party's ability to adapt to social and
political changes.

"Fifth, is Umno's ability to absorb newly-emerging social and political
forces and sixth, the party's ability to seek a balance between the old and the
new, the traditional and the modern, the local and the global," he said.

The outgoing Umno president said party members should realise that the party
was facing a life and death situation.

"The fate of Umno rests in the attitude of its members and leaders who will
carry the aspirations of our religion, people and nation.

"Umno members and its leadership will play a crucial role to determine
whether developments in the future will reflect the glory of our traditions," he
said.

"All of us realise that the leadership of Umno forms the leadership of the
country."
-- BERNAMA