(Bernama) -- In less than a month, Umno will be amending its constitution, which is seen by some political observers as an effort to win back the people's support for the party.
Much awaited is the abolishment of the nomination quota system -- a system which is said does not reflect the grassroots' aspirations, besides contributing to money politics in the party.
This is because those (2,500 party delegates) given the power to choose the Umno President and Deputy President are the same people that choose the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister.
So, which proposal will Umno take up to improve its election system? Will it increase the number of delegates or give the "one member, one vote" right to the 2.3 party members nationwide?
To some political analysts, the amendments to be made to the party's constitution at the special general assembly on Oct 13 will determine the party's survival in the country's political landscape.
"As the dominant political party in the country, such change is important for Umno to regain the trust and confidence of the people, especially the party members," political science lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia, Dr Sivamurugan Pandian, said.
He said although it was difficult to tackle negative perceptions about Umno, like being linked to money politics, the amendments would at least give new hope to the party's grassroot members.
"If in the past it was as though the grassroots had been denied their voice by the 2,500 delegates to the general assembly, who might have chosen leaders who were not the grassroots' choice, this change may give them new hope."
He was referring to the situation where a popular candidate receiving the highest number of nominations from the divisions, might not necessarily be chosen by the delegates for a top post under the present circumstances.
For instance, the contest for the Youth post in the last party elections saw Khairy Jamaluddin winning the post although his two challengers, Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo and Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir, received more nominations than him.
The idea of abolishing the nomination quota system by amending the party constitution had been voiced by Umno President Datuk Seri Najib Razak even before the party's supreme council decided on the proposal, aimed at making the party elections more transparent, open and democratic.
Two commitees were formed -- the Umno Constitution Amendments Main Committee and Umno Constitution Amendments Technical Committee -- which are responsible to obtain feedback from the grassroots.
Chairman of the main committee, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, said the amendments were proposed based on five rationales, namely empowering the grassroot members, making it easier for members to contest for posts, making Umno more inclusive to all groups, shortening the campaign period and easing the party membership process.
Among the proposals for empowering the grassroots was by increasing the number of delegates from 2,500 to between 60,000 and 650,000 from the divisions in choosing the party leadership line-up, said the Umno vice-president.
For that, Article 9.5 of the party constitution which has been in use for over 10 years now and which had fixed the nomination quota for the party's top posts needs to be amended.
Like Sivamurugan, political analyst Assoc Prof Dr Ahmad Nidzammuddin from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia said the amendments must be practical although drastic.
"In making the party elections more transparent and democratic, the proposal to give all party members the right to choose the top leaders can be taken up, but it is less practical than increasing the number of delegates to 60,000, for instance," he said.
Ahmad Nidzammuddin said such a change could still curb money politics even if not 100 per cent.
"It will reduce room for manipulation and the selection will now be based on a candidate's capability and popularity. The power to choose no longer lies with the 13 delegates from each division."
He said the proposal to give one member one vote would cost time and a lot of money, besides making monitoring difficult.
"Cheating may still be possible, except if you run the party election like the general election where there's the percentage of voter turnout and so on," he added.
It is understood that there is also a proposal for 60,000 divisional delegates to choose the leaders for the top posts and for the 2.3 party members to choose the leaders at the divisional level.
Umno Youth deputy chief Datuk Razali Ibrahim said any decision on the proposed amendments must take into consideration the voice of the grassroots, including the youths.
Sivamurugan and Ahmad Nidzammuddin shared this view as they believed that support from the younger generation in and outside the party would determine Umno's resilience in the years ahead.
"This is because today's young generation do not blindly support a party. They will assess an individual's capability, leadership qualities and integrity before giving their support," said Sivamurugan.
"This aspiraton must be considered by Umno in making the amendments to ensure the party remains relevant for all quarters and not just for a certain group like the elitist Malays," he added.
Whatever decision made on the proposed amendments will be keenly watched by all quarters in and outside the country, as Umno has been one party that has remained in power for so long -- over five decades.
"The amendments may be the initial step forward, but it all depends on how far Umno can prove to the people its seriousness in serving them, just like what it had been in the early years after the country's independence," said Ahmad Nidzammuddin.
The Umno supreme council tomorrow will discuss the feedback from grassroot members on the proposed amendments before the decision is made by the party at its special general assembly next month.
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