GE16: Umno can rise again if coalition with PH holds - Expert

SHAH ALAM - Umno can regain Malay support in the 16th General Election (GE16) if it continues to maintain its coalition with Pakatan Harapan (PH).

Political analyst Associate Professor Dr Mazlan Ali believed that the coalition could open up opportunities for Umno to contest in Malay-majority seats.

"I expect Umno can contest in 70 Malay seats, which could provide the party with a chance to once again become a party that garners Malay support.

"Looking at the current political situation, it will be difficult for Umno to win all the seats, but if Umno adopts a similar approach as in the Nenggiri state assembly by-election, it's not impossible for Umno to win many seats," he said.

Mazlan, who is also a Universiti Teknologi Malaysia Perdana Centre for Social Sciences and Humanities lecturer said that to win back the voters' trust, Umno needed to reflect on and rectify all the negative issues associated with the party.

"Umno must show the public that the party can once again earn the trust of the Malays," he said.

Additionally, he claimed that the decline in support might be due to Malays no longer choosing Umno as their sole party of choice.

"We saw in the recent state elections the peak of Umno's decline, where the party suffered severe losses in Kelantan, Terengganu, and Kedah, which are Malay-majority areas.

"This indicates that Umno is facing a significant crisis, with its own members turning their backs on the party," he claimed.

However, he said that Barisan Nasional's (BN) success in winning the Nenggiri state assembly by-election with a majority of over 3,000 votes is something extraordinary and has given new hope to Umno.

"The Nenggiri by-election has proven Umno's credibility, where the area with a 90 per cent Malay majority was won with a very convincing majority.

"I believe Umno can rise again," he said.