By VIJAY JOSHI / AP WRITER | KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia's ruling party delegates gathered Tuesday to choose new leaders—the biggest revamp of leadership in decades and an attempt to recover from a humiliating election defeat of the old guard a year ago.
 Workers put up the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) logo ahead of the party's assembly in Kuala Lumpur. (Photo: Reuters) |
The congress comes amid heightened political tensions after authorities on Monday banned the opposition's flagship newspapers for three months and used tear gas to break up a rally by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.
UMNO, as the dominant party in the ruling National Front coalition, has been in power since independence in 1957. But never has it appeared more vulnerable as now—riven with infighting, corruption and favoritism, it is rapidly losing voter support and is left to govern a country facing an almost certain recession.
"This is the most critical time in the history of UMNO," said Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak.
"We need to accept this challenge by making massive changes to the party and the government. If we are not brave enough to change, we will be changed by the people," he said in an interview with party newspapers Sunday.
More than 2,500 delegates will attend the congress to elect top party leaders, including its president, deputy president, three vice presidents, 25 supreme council members and heads of the party's youth and women's wings.
Najib will be elected unopposed as the party president, a post that traditionally carries with it the office of prime minister. Najib will replace Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, possibly on April 2 or 3.
Abdullah was forced by dissidents to step down to accept blame for the National Front's abysmal showing in the March 2008 general elections. It failed to win its customary two-thirds majority in Parliament and conceded control of an unprecedented five states to the opposition.
Opposition leaders accused authorities Tuesday of clamping down on anti-government criticism ahead of the congress and special elections to fill legislative vacancies next month.
Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar told the New Straits Times daily that the government has banned two opposition newspapers for three months because they published "distorted and fabricated (information) with the aim to create misunderstanding and instill hatred for the government and leaders."
Separately, police fired tear gas and chemical-laced water to disperse thousands of people who attended a rally to hear opposition leader Anwar speak in northern Kedah state late Monday.
"It is a crackdown" to smooth the takeover of power by Najib, said Anwar's chief of staff, Ibrahim Yaacob.
Much of last year's voter anger was directed at UMNO, which is widely perceived as corrupt and inefficient by all races, including the Malays who form its main power base. Its leaders are considered out of touch with the people, especially the minorities who see them as racists responsible for fueling a religious and ethnic divide in the country. The party is also accused of subverting the judiciary, the police force and the bureaucracy.
Party leaders acknowledge that failure to reform will almost certainly lead to an opposition victory in the next elections, due in 2013. They say the best person to restore the party's popularity is Najib, the son of a former prime minister and the nephew of another.
The party elections will be closely watched to see how many of Najib's confidantes get elected. Among them is International Trade and Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who is contesting the post of deputy president. If elected, he will become the deputy prime minister.
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