Umno the MOST SUCCESSFUL party in the world - Najib

PEKAN - UMNO members must strengthen unity and put aside personal interests if they want the party to win big in the next general election, said party president Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday.

He said like a strong building, Umno must have a well-built structure that could withstand internal and external threats.

Being Muslims, Najib said, Umno members must also remember that the party could only succeed with the blessings of Allah.

"As long as we continue to fight in a united front and follow the true teachings of Islam, we will always have love and compassion from Allah," he said when opening the Pekan Umno delegates' meeting.

Najib said Umno members should also focus on the party rather than their personal interests or other petty matters that could affect the party's strength and unity.

He reminded party members that the country's success was also due to Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders' ability to understand the needs and aspirations of the people, which was in line with the parliamentary democracy concept.

"I believe that ours is the most successful party in the world but we should never be boastful as our success is due to God's permission. We are also willing to fight and face all the challenges ahead and, as party members, we must always be loyal to our party leadership," he said, adding that past and present BN leaders had also contributed to the country's success.

Among others, said Najib, the people's per capita income had now increased to US$9,700 (RM30,070) from only US$300 in the 1950s, while the poverty rate had been reduced to 3.6 per cent from more than 70 per cent when the country first gained independence.

Blind & fork-tongued

Najib, who is Pekan member of parliament, also cautioned his constituents on the opposition's efforts to deny the development that had taken place in the area.

"Either they are blind or have forked tongues as what they are trying to do is to incite the people here by giving them misleading information."

Najib said the Pekan constituency was now undergoing rapid development with multi-million ringgit projects being implemented, including the upgrading of the Kuantan-Pekan federal road and Pekan bridge and the construction of the Universiti Malaysia Pahang main campus and a four-star hotel here.

A total of 932 delegates from 145 Umno branches in the Pekan constituency attended the meeting yesterday.

Also present were Najib's wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and Pekan Umno deputy chief Datuk Ishak Muhammad.

Later, when closing the delegates' meeting, Najib urged Umno members to focus on attracting young people to support BN as they made up 30 per cent of voters in the country.

He said the Umno election machinery must also intensify efforts to win the general election as it would not only ensure the party's survival but also the fate of Malays in the country.

At the Felcra national-level open house here later, Najib said the government would continue developing rural areas with huge allocations in each budget.

"We want balanced development not only among the races but also between the urban and rural areas," said Najib, who also congratulated Felcra for its success in assisting the people in the rural areas. About 15,000 Felcra community members and locals joined Najib and Felcra chairman Datuk Tajuddin Abdul Rahman at the open house.

NST