BN needs to re-energise, reinvigorate coalition for next GE – Najib

KOTA KINABALU: The Barisan Nasional’s (BN) performance in the 12th and 13th general elections (GE) required all its component parties to reinvigorate and reenergise the coalition to face challenges ahead, leading up to the next GE, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

He warned that BN members should expect to face challenges that would be more onerous in the future.

“The first pre-requisite for political survival and longevity is to close ranks, strengthen the party, avoid political divisions and move forward for all Malaysians,” he said when officiating the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) 25th General Assembly here yesterday.

Najib, who is also BN chairman, said once the component parties had strengthened their organisation, each party representing a specific community in Malaysia needed to determine what was expected of the party by the communities concerned.

He told the BN component parties to engage with the people to convince them that BN was still the best government to lead Malaysia.

The Prime Minister also told the BN component parties to persevere in addressing lies spun by the opposition in the social media.

He said the party needed to do whatever it took to tackle issues attacking the government’s efforts and policies.

“BN has constantly been manipulated through the social media, with so many halftruths.

“In the last election, voters were duped by the opposition that BN secretly brought in 40,000 Bangladeshi as voters.

“This (secretly bringing in 40,000 Bangladeshi as voters) is an outright lie and I cannot believe many swallowed (believed) it,” he said.

Najib reminded the people not to believe everything on the social media, which had been made a tool by the opposition to convince the people that it (opposition) was better than BN.

He explained that the people needed to look beyond hating BN, as that was what the opposition was telling them to do.

He also said a party needed to i mpress upon t he people with its capability in being a government, rather than inciting hatred among the people.

“Malaysia is among the best economies in Asean in the past nine months and recently, AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation leaders told me that they think Malaysia is an up-and-coming nation, and that gives credit to BN,” the Prime Minister added. – Bernama