Umno Needs Team Players, Not Prima Donnas, Says Najib

PEKAN, July 4 (Bernama) -- Drawing a parallel from the ongoing FIFA World Cup which sees the exit of several favourite teams, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said today Umno needs more team players, not prima donnas.

He said teams with strong teamwork would reap more successes compared to those with many prima donnas.

"In the world cup," he said, "even favourite teams lose."

"Can favourite Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN) be successful in the 13th general election?" he asked.

The Umno president said that there was danger in having prima donnas in a team because "they might attempt to score own goals".

"We should build a strong team. Talented individuals can become more successful if the team spirit is strong," he said when opening the Pekan Umno division meeting here Sunday.

Najib, who is also the Pekan Umno chief, said Umno members and leaders should go back to the basis of the party's struggle and put the party's interest above self interest.

He said that in a parliamentary democracy, political parties could not avoid going through ups and downs but those who failed to live up to the people's expectation would find themselves going on a downward spiral in the eyes of the people.

The prime minister said managing the success of a party which had done a lot of good deeds to the race, religion and country was more difficult than achieving the success itself.

Speaking to reporters later, Najib said his remark was a gentle reminder to party members and that it did not mean that Umno was now weak.

"It's more of an advice; my advice as party president to party members, including myself.

"It does not mean that the situation is bad. I just want the best for Umno because we are facing many challenges. We hope that from this process, we can become a party and leaders the people can be proud of," he said.

Najib said he used the World Cup analogy to drive home the point that it was important for party members and leaders to value team work rather than being individualistic.

"If we look at the World Cup, teams that work as one are more successful compared to those which rely on individuals," he said.

On the ongoing divisional meetings nationwide, Najib said the party's management committee was monitoring the progress based on reports submitted by state Umno liaison committees.

"So far, there are no negative reports. Everything goes on smoothly except for a division in Kelantan which is facing a problem. The state Umno and the management committee are addressing this," he said.