‘Focus on GE14, not party elections’
> Hishammuddin tells Umno delegates not to debate internal polls at general assembly next month
KUALA LUMPUR: Umno wants its delegates to focus on the coming general election (GE), and not the party elections.
Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said delegates should not raise any motions pertaining to the party elections, to be held next year.
“I have asked that any motions on the Umno elections not be debated in this year’s general assembly, because our focus should be on the GE.
“There’s no use discussing or contesting for positions in the party if you can’t obtain a huge mandate in the coming GE.
“So our focus this time will be more towards the general election, rather than party elections,” he told a press conference after chairing the party supreme council’s motion committee meeting yesterday.
Also present were Umno Information chief Tan Sri Annuar Musa, and supreme council members Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom and Datuk Seri Mahdzir Khalid.
The Umno general assembly will be held from Dec 5 to 9 at the party headquarters in the Putra World Trade Centre.
Hishammuddin said 826 motions from 191 Umno divisions were received by the motion committee, 191 of which have been accepted for debate in the general assembly, while the remaining have been accepted for referral.
He said it was vital to ensure that this year’s party assembly not only portray the “feel good” factor in the party, but also the winning mentality.
On the preparation of Umno’s machinery for the general election, Hishammuddin said: “I have never seen such detailed preparation to face a GE, and I’ve been in this business for a long time.”
“This is what is required for the party to transform and get a strong mandate, learning from our previous elections, and understanding that the global landscape has changed and Umno has also got to change,” he added.