KUALA LUMPUR — Barisan Nasional (BN) is “ill” with four ailments that caused voters to reject it in the last general election, said Federal Territories BN chairman Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
“Delusion, Amnesia, Inertia and Arrogance” are the coalition’s four diseases that it must immediately address, the Umno vice-president said in his opening speech at the 2024 Federal Territories BN Convention at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur here today.
“Delusion because we assume that voters still support us because of our past contributions,” Bernama quoted him saying.
“Amnesia, (because) we ourselves forget the real purpose of setting up our party, what it is for, which is to build this country.
“Inertia, as voters have rejected us but we remain like this, we don’t want to change, (we are) static.
“And Arrogance, which we need to destroy, as we just seem to can’t accept when we are admonished, (we) can’t accept other’s opinions, we don’t want to admit or accept reality (that) we’ve done wrong, and worse, we don’t want to compromise,” said Johari.
He urged every BN member not to give up efforts to improve and change to make the coalition stronger.
“The first rule is don’t give up, address these four ailments and we need to move forward as a team, unite, whether Malay, Chinese, Indian, we work together,”said Johari, who is also Plantation and Commodities Minister.
The convention was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
Zahid, who is also BN chairman, said the coalition would be negotiating with its partners in the unity government to contest five parliamentary seats in the Federal Territories in the 16th General Election.
BN currently holds one parliamentary seat in the Federal Territories which is Titiwangsa, where Johari is the incumbent.
Zahid also named as targets, the Putrajaya and Labuan federal territory seats – both of which BN lost to Perikatan Nasional in GE15 – adding that if BN “negotiated well, we will get five seats,” media reported him saying. – November 24, 2024