FORMER UMNO treasurer Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak has pointed out the need for the party to select between two existing narratives to regain the support of Malay voters ahead of the next general election.
Salleh articulated that the first narrative highlights the Malays’ indebtedness to UMNO for its pivotal role in securing Malaysia’s independence from the British in 1957, alongside the special assistance the community has received.
The second narrative, he explained, positions UMNO as indebted to the Malays for granting it the opportunity to govern the country for 60 years.
“I am confident that if we take the correct approach and adopt the right attitude, we will be able to attract the Malays back to the party and restore the confidence they once had in UMNO,” the Usukan assemblyman expressed in a Facebook post.
UMNO has seen a decline in Malay support since the 13th general election. The party’s umbrella coalition Barisan Nasional (BN) was defeated in the 2018 general election, ending its six-decade rule.
The 15th General Election in 2022 marked UMNO’s worst electoral performance, securing only 27 seats and 31% of the popular vote.
Moreover, UMNO struggled in the six state elections last August, winning just 19 out of 108 contested seats.
James Chin of the University of Tasmania recently told FMT that Pakatan Harapan’s defeat in the Sungai Bakap by-election indicated UMNO’s diminishing appeal among Malays in Penang.
On Monday (July 15), Salleh stressed that UMNO and BN’s primary political objective should be to reclaim every seat lost to Bersatu in the 2022 polls. – July 17, 2024
