KUALA LUMPUR: An Umno leader today posed the question of whether the party should consider contesting on the Umno ticket rather than under Barisan Nasional (BN) and using the BN logo in future elections.
This question arises as Umno faces the rejection of Malay voters in the recent Aug 12 state elections, coupled with reported internal 'disputes' within the BN leadership since the end of the 15th general election (GE15) held a year ago.
"I would like to pose this question, has the time come for Umno to contest on the Umno ticket in the upcoming elections, or should it still be under the BN flag, or under BN with a new coalition?" said Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, the Umno information chief, in a statement today.
She stated that it is indeed easy to call for the resignation of BN chairman, Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, after Umno's defeat in the recent six state elections. However, at the same time, BN is an institution.
"Why is everything being placed on the chairman's shoulders when it was not the chairman who contested in the previous state elections? What's most important, in any election, is that the winning formula considers factors like candidates, voters and challenges.
"What needs to change is not the president but how we work and run our campaigns," she said.
She noted that one of the main challenges that Umno and BN still face is the digital platform warfare, as the conventional face-to-face approach is no longer the mainstay of campaigns.
"The real campaign is on the digital platform. BN itself needs to understand and acknowledge that we face a deficit of knowledge and mastery of the digital platform when our opponents spend unlimited resources using those platforms to influence voters.
"We don't have regulations or laws that can limit the opponent's unlimited propaganda using vast resources on the digital platform because platform providers are based outside the country.
"Moving forward, BN needs to be ready to transform into a party that is more adept and knowledgeable in mastering digital technology and the unity government also needs to be prepared with mastery of digital platform warfare," she said.
Azalina explained that she carefully reads all the views and criticisms from all sides, whether from within the party or outside the party, since Umno-BN's defeat in the recent six state elections.
"This is the practice of democracy within the party, where every member can express their views. But in the concept of democracy as well, there are winners and losers in elections. Surely, we know and understand this reality.
"It's easy to point fingers, especially when we lose. In an election, losing by one vote is still a loss. Winning by one vote is still a win. Maybe we can give an example, if we lose when contesting for the Parent-Teacher Association (PIBchairman position, let's not burn down and destroy the school," she said.