KUALA LUMPUR: Umno must come back strong to reverse the fate of the Malays and Bumiputera, says Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
Citing statistics on Bumiputera employment and businesses, the Umno vice-president said there was much work to do, adding that political power was necessary for this.
“There is no other way than making Umno stronger again so we change this trend for the future. It doesn’t matter how long.
“Beginning with Nenggiri, we will work on reversing everything for the future;” he said in his winding-up speech at the Umno general assembly here on Saturday (Aug 24).
Johari acknowledged it would take time to restore Umno’s power for the benefit of future generations.
“It may take another two to three general elections. But, the journey begins in this hall and I am confident we can do this if we are all sincere in uplifting Umno for the future,” he said.
He also highlighted the call for Umno to return to dominance, saying it brought a heavy responsibility.
“It cannot rest on the president’s shoulders alone but all layers of the party.
“The party has contributed a lot to the people but let’s not be complacent with our success and history.
“If we made mistakes, let us apologise. We must rise and make Umno more dynamic, fresh, clean and always moderate.
“Umno must be more progressive and represent all Malaysians and those who live here,” he said.
Earlier in his speech, Johari said there were 630,000 people unemployed, with Bumiputra making up 287,000 or 61.5% after the Barisan Nasional government fell in 2018.
Of the 61.5%, Johari said 274,000 were Bumiputra youth aged 30 and below.
He said only 27% of the Malays and Bumiputra were categorised as skilled workers, the remainder being in the semi and low-skilled categories.
He added that more than two million people were underemployed, with 1.85 million being Malays and Bumiputra.
