Utusan must change ways, says Najib

Najib urged Utusan to be more than just Umno’s mouthpiece. — file pic

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 — Controversial Umno mouthpiece, Utusan Malaysia, must transform itself if it wishes to stay relevant, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today.
The Malay-language daily pushes Umno’s agenda — often through racially-tinged articles against the party’s rivals — but Najib urged the 72-year-old newspaper to be more than just the party’s mouthpiece.
“I understand that sensational news sells... especially with that ‘one person,’” he said in a veiled reference to Utusan Malaysia’s constant attacks on Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“But you must also be a medium to build an intellectual culture, a critical society,” the Umno president added.
Najib’s call for change was made at the company’s ground-breaking ceremony for a new headquarters in its Jalan Chan Sow Lin plant here.
The prime minister said that the ceremony must coincide in a shift of paradigm for the newspaper.
While it may continue to fight for its so-called agenda to protect the nation’s majority “race, Islam and country”, Utusan must play a pivotal role in helping the government achieve its transformation plan.
“In the development of the new building, Utusan must also work towards handling changes,” he said.
Najib has embarked to re-brand the Barisan Nasional-led federal government’s image as an administration that stands on the all inclusive 1 Malaysia platform.
The New Economic Model has become the nation’s sixth prime minister’s map to drive the ruling coalition away from its Malay-centric path which has polarised the nation and crippled the economy.
But Utusan has not been doing Najib the much needed favours. It continues to draw blood through opinion pieces that have drawn the ire of the non-Malay population.
Though the prime minister did not touch on this in his speech before Utusan’s big guns, he made subtle hints that the newspaper must be quick to adapt to the current political and economic climate.
“Yes we can lean on history but what is the use of history if our survival is threatened,” stressed Najib.
And while urging Utusan to step up to the plate given the fierce competition in the news industry, Najib warned on the need for the Malay daily to safeguard its integrity.
“The integrity of our news reports is important. There is if we keep having to apologise. It must be fast, accurate and verified,” said Najib who is the son of the nation’s second premier, Tun Abdul Razak.
Echoing his past call to all media, Najib also urged Utusan to be partners to the government.
“Utusan must play its role as a partner to the government because we are heading towards change”.