Ahead for Najib at Umno assembly
THE Umno general assembly that starts tomorrow has been labelled as “the mother of all assemblies”, given the huge task Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak will have to face.
This is the last assembly before the 14th general election and the onus will be on the party president to set the tone and gear the members to face the challenges ahead.
This time around, Umno members will have to face the likes of former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.
Najib will have to ensure Umno is united and strong and its members ready to face the uphill task of winning over voters.
Focus will be on his keynote address, where he will have to put to rest all rumours of divisions within the party and convince members he is once again capable of leading Umno and the Barisan Nasional to victory.
As in previous years, the Umno general assembly will kick off with the presidential briefing on Dec 5, followed by the simultaneous opening of the meetings of the three wings – Wanita Umno, Youth and Puteri Umno – in the evening.
The meetings of the three Umno wings would be held during the day on Dec 6, while the supreme council meeting is scheduled to take place in the evening.
The general assembly proper would take place from Dec 7-9.
A total of 5,739 delegates will attend the five-day assembly, 2,761 of whom will attend the central Umno general assembly, Wanita assembly (994), Youth assembly (992) and Puteri assembly (992).
Political analyst Assoc Prof Dr Jeniri Amir said: “We can expect Najib to attack the Opposition all-out. If he was a bit reserved before, expect an ‘open war’ this time, especially with what has been going on surrounding Dr Mahathir.”
It would not be too far-fetched to think that Najib would play the emotional card by asking Umno do its best to win the election as a parting gift for him, with GE14 most likely his last general election before he calls it a day.
Unlike in previous general elections, social media has played a major role in spreading information and Umno Youth members will have to maximise their campaign period to win them over.
Eyes will also be on Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, who is the key in helping to swing the majority of young voters towards Umno.
The younger voters are expected to determine where the Malay tsunami will swing this time around, considering the impact of social media in influencing their decision.