The Malaysian Insight

UMNO will not ditch former prime minister Najib Razak, despite the Court of Appeal upholding his conviction for corruption and further looming trials, analysts said.

According to experts, the influential Najib still has a strong following among Umno’s voter base, especially the conservatives.

They also said that any move by Umno to distance itself from Najib could lead to further divisions in the party.

However, there were others who felt that Umno should cast Najib off, so that his corruption charges are not used against the party in the 15th general election.

Universiti Malaya socio-political analyst Awang Azman Awang Pawi said there is still a large number of people who support Najib.

“This support will make it difficult for Umno to break away from him ahead of GE15,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“If Umno decides to part ways with Najib, it may also cause further internal divisions within the party.”

However, Awang admitted that keeping Najib close could pose a headache for the party because, while he may draw in conservatives, he will drive away middle-class voters.

Earlier this week, the appeals court upheld the High Court’s decision and found the former prime minister guilty of all seven charges of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money-laundering in relation to SRC International, a subsidiary of 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

Najib was originally convicted by Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali in July last year. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined RM210 million.

The appeals court also lambasted Najib for being a “national embarrassment” and compared his Arab donation defence to that of a tale from Arabian Nights, a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales.

Political analyst Oh Ei Sun of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs said whatever reservations Umno might have about Najib are erased when they look at his performance and influence in the recent by-elections, especially in Malacca.

“Umno simply cannot afford to break away from him. He has rebuilt himself as essentially the main spokesperson for the party’s policy positions on any and all issues.

“His ‘Bossku’ image has (also) ingrained itself with the Malay majority, which yearn for the socioeconomic disbursement renowned during his premiership.”

Oh is of the view that with Najib at the forefront campaigning for Umno, his popularity he may lead the party to victory in the next election.

“His popularity was once again cemented in Malacca recently. With him as Umno’s chief campaigner, Umno could sweep up more seats and be entrenched in its ruling position.”

Barisan Nasional (BN) clinched a two-thirds majority in Malacca after winning 21 of the 28 seats in the assembly.

Pakatan Harapan (PH) contested in every seat, with PKR fielding 11 candidates, Amanah nine and DAP eight. PKR lost all 11 seats to BN, DAP won four and Amanah one.

Opposition’s attack boy

However, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s political analyst Mazlan Ali said that for Umno to move forward, it has to break ties with Najib.

“Umno must sacrifice Najib. If Umno wants to move forward, they may have to stop standing by him.

“This is only the SRC case, there is still the ongoing 1MDB trial. It may return as a hot issue in the next election.

“They (the opposition) will use it again to attract voters’ attention.”

The fact that the decision by the appeals court was unanimous also does not bode well for Najib or Umno, he said.

“The appeals court not only agreed with the High Court, the bench called him a national embarrassment.

“There is no longer any denying it, the evidence against him is strong and the high court’s decision is correct. Even his appeal might not be accepted by the Federal Court.”

Mazlan said Umno also has the Kampung Baru land issue to contend with, which has also courted the wrath of its voter base.

The twin issue may further cause Umno to lose its popularity, he said.

“Umno wants the election to be held quickly, but the Kampung Baru issue has angered the Malays, which they have to deal with on top of Najib. The voters there feel deceived by the party.”

Barisan Nasional politicians previously told Kampung Baru folk that more would be offered for their land, but this has not happened even after these leaders returned to the government under Perikatan Nasional.

The government has refused to offer more than RM1,000/sqft for their land despite promising a good price if the government of the day is Malay-centric. – December 12, 2021.