SHAH ALAM - Umno will "die” if the party does not take steps to change within the next 10 years, says Johor Umno deputy chief Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed.
By not embracing change, Nur Jazlan said, the party will not be getting the support from the young voters who will dominate and be the voice of future elections, leaving the party with only a small number of mature voters by the 16th General Election (GE16).
"Many might be surprised by my statement but that is the reality of Umno’s fate for GE16 if the party is still with its old ways of thinking.
"The truth is, the world and the political landscape have changed a lot,” he said in a Facebook post today.
For GE15, he said, it was estimated to have over four million voters aged 18 and above who have been automatically registered and were the dominant group that will be the voices for future elections.
"If Umno wants to win the hearts of the new and young voters, it needs to implement changes in various aspects including the change of mind, approach, leadership and candidates for GE15.
"Do we just want to see other parties like DAP, PKR and Muda influence these young people? Why is Umno not making efforts in that direction?,” he said.
He said Umno could no longer rely too much on the existing mature voters while there was a wide opportunity to gain the support of the young voters.
Nur Jazlan added that he fully supported the party’s president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s statement at the Selangor Barisan Nasional (BN) convention, last month, asking the state’s BN leaders to make way for new faces and professionals to be fielded as candidates for GE15 in the effort to reclaim Selangor from Pakatan Harapan (PH).
"Zahid said as politicians, the BN "warlords" should accept the youths and professional group wholeheartedly to be the candidate for the election.
"The president’s suggestion is actually not only directed to Selangor BN but also for all the states,” he said.
He added that the young voters today were clearly not interested with the old political ways, but more attracted to movement-based politics which started in a small scale but was appealing to them.
"That is why when someone makes a flash mob, a petition and political pickets, many young people support them to the point when a politician agrees with the legalisation of marijuana, some young people have shown their support,” he said.
This, he said, was the reason why Umno needed to keep up with the current trend, but with a rational approach to tackle the young voters.
He also said Umno could no longer depend on MCA and MIC for the coming election as 80 per cent of their candidates during the Melaka and Johor state elections depended on Umno voters.
He also suggested the veterans to take a break and start paving way for younger candidates to continue Umno’s legacy.
"I believe with the extensive experience of the veterans in elections and politics, they can provide guidance to the potential young candidates,” he added.