Umno VP says election victory depends not on familiar faces but coordination, cites Dr M as example

KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 — Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani called on his party to name its candidates for the coming six state elections early to enable the grassroot members sufficient time to accept the decision and prepare, Mingguan Malaysia, the Sunday edition of Utusan Malaysia, reported today.

Speaking at the close of Umno’s general assembly here yesterday, the Titiwangsa MP said an election victory depends on three key factors, listing them as the party, its machinery, and the candidates.

He added that the decisive factor for victory depends on how well each of the three components work with each other.

“So, three factors, namely the party, machinery and candidates are important entities if you want to win and they cannot be separated.

“If there is an element of dissatisfaction in the position of the machinery, it must be resolved quickly,” he was quoted as saying.

He noted that conventionally, Umno division chiefs would be among the candidates fielded in elections.

“There may be a division chief who works night and day but was suddenly not picked to become a candidate and feels disappointment over it. If he’s not disappointed, then maybe his machinery is.

“A new candidate comes in, but if they lose it’s not because they were not good but because the machinery was not organised properly,” Johari was quoted as explaining.

He named former two-time prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to illustrate his point.

“Like Tun Mahathir Mohamad who was prime minister for 22 years but in GE15, lost because of the party. Nobody knows Pejuang. If we take care of Barisan Nasional, that’s one of the factors for our victory,” Johari was quoted as saying.

Dr Mahathir who was sacked from Bersatu after GE14 later founded another party called Pejuang.

He ran under it to defend his Langkawi parliamentary seat in last November’s general election, but lost not only to Datuk Mohd Suhaimi Abdullah of Bersatu but also his RM10,000 election deposit.

In GE15, BN secured only 30 parliamentary seats out of the 178 it contested.

Analysts have said that Umno’s disastrous performance in GE15 was a result of too much friction within the party.

This instability also indirectly contributed to Malay voters shifting their support to PAS, which is now part of the Perikatan Nasional coalition that includes Bersatu.