Umno slams PAS for undermining its outreach plans

By Neville Spykerman - The Malaysian Insider

HULU SELANGOR, Jan 2 — Umno information chief Datuk Ahmad Maslan today slammed PAS for trying to undermine the party’s “Umno Juara Rakyat” outreach programme with its own counter programme called “Umno Pengkhianat Rakyat”.

The political rivals are racing to get support from the split Malay electorate which forms 60 per cent of the population and the bulk particularly in rural areas.

“It’s very unbecoming of them,” the deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said when responding to the Islamist party’s plans to counter Umno's "People’s Champion" initiative with its "People's Traitor" programme.

“That’s their mistake. We’re carrying out a positive programme to get close to the people while they are reacting negatively to hit out at us.

“Let them,” he said, adding the public would be the judge.

The programme is part of Umno’s effort to regained public support, which was lost in the last general election, ahead of fresh polls expected as early as next year.

Ahmad described Juara Rakyat as the “most important programme of the year for Umno”, saying it’s aimed at getting the party closer to all communities.

“We want to demonstrate that we are with the people and are here to handle all their problems and issues.”

Under the programme, all 191 Umno divisions will conduct simultaneous activities throughout the year with different monthly themes, starting with education this month and welfare in February.

For January, Umno divisions will concentrate on organising events to help students prepare for their exams or help schools in need, while next month they will shift their focus to helping welfare homes and the underprivileged.

Ahmad, who is organising chairman of the programme, said each Umno division will get allocations to carry out the events from the party headquarters.

Each Umno supreme council member has also agreed to adopt five divisions to ensure the success of the programme.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is schedule to kick off the programme here on Jan 9.

Ahmad said three days of activities have been planned and the party hopes to draw at least 15,000 people.

He also said it was only a coincidence that Hulu Selangor, where there is intense speculation of a possible by-election because of the ill health of MP Dr Datuk Zainal Abidin Ahmad, was selected as the venue to launch the programme.

Ahmad pointed out that Najib heads the Selangor Umno liaison committee and wanted a semi-rural venue for the launch, which was planned over a month ago.

The new initiative is similar to the Setia Bersama Rakyat (Semarak) campaign, launched after Umno split in 1987 by then-party secretary-general, the late Tan Sri Mohamed Rahmat, who coincidentally died yesterday.