KUALA LUMPUR: The win in the Nenggiri by-election should be a reminder for Umno to maintain its momentum in the upcoming Mahkota polls with a similar strategy, says Kelantan Umno Youth chief Mohd Azmawi Fikri Abdul Ghani.
The newly-elected Nenggiri assemblyman said Nenggiri election director Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah had instructed the team to focus on smaller scale campaign strategy which brought the party a huge win with a 3,352 vote majority on Aug 17.
“Without wanting to be overly proud, we should view the win as a matter that we should reflect upon and evaluate because maintaining the momentum is not an easy feat.
“We should not excessively criticise our opponents (when campaigning) but instead let’s strengthen the party, bring forward politics that leans towards welfare, bring ideas and present them to the people,” he said when debating the presidential address at the 2024 Umno general assembly here, Friday (Aug 23).
During the by-election campaign period, Mohd Azmawi shared that the people wanted more solutions from the politicians instead of empty promises.
“They do not want to hear candidates casting allegations against each other but instead want to know what kind of solutions we have for the issues they are facing.
“Even though opponents had tried to provoke us, we did not react. And it was proven when the allegations thrown had instead drowned them,” he added.
Another important point Mohd Azmawi raised was the use of social media when campaigning, and urged all delegates to be more active and present on their social media accounts.
“It is the most effective tool to win people's hearts if we use it wisely,” he said.
Mohd Azmawi also praised Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi for making the right decision to terminate and cut off those who tried to sabotage the party, allowing it to move forward successfully.
On June 19, Kelantan state assembly Speaker Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah declared the Nenggiri seat vacant after he was informed that its representative Mohd Azizi Abu Naim had ceased to be a member of Bersatu on June 13.
Mohd Azmawi secured 9,091 votes, defeating his opponent, PAS candidate Mohd Rizwadi Ismail representing Perikatan Nasional, who garnered 5,739 votes.
