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UMNO could face political extinction within the next two decades if it fails to reverse current voter trends, party president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has warned, calling for an unprecedented transformation to restore public confidence.
Speaking at a dinner marking the first anniversary of the UMNO Patriotic School, Ahmad Zahid said the party risked becoming irrelevant if support patterns seen during the 15th General Election continued unchanged.
He said sweeping change was no longer a matter of political rhetoric or optional reform but an urgent necessity to counter the deeply negative perceptions attached to the party.
“Even though the product is selling well, its perception is extremely negative. This suspicion and prejudice are what have stranded us on the political shore, surrounded by the debris of a fierce perception that is difficult to change,” he said.
He warned that the impact of this negative image extended beyond existing supporters, discouraging potential new backers from engaging with the party.
“The effect is not only on our supporters, but even those who want to approach us and get to know us will slowly drift away,” he said.
“For that reason, we must create something extraordinary,” he added.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, said UMNO must urgently develop a new political marketing strategy that is fresher and grounded in intellectual values, spiritual strength and leadership quality if it is to remain relevant to voters.
He said the party’s Patriotic School initiative should play a central role in that renewal, expressing his hope that the 158 graduates of the programme would emerge as a new generation of thinkers capable of analysing, formulating and offering guidance to UMNO’s leadership as the party approaches its centenary.
“SPU is a good UMNO product and it must produce even better products that we can sell so that we remain in the political marketplace and are accepted in the same way as other popular brands,” he said.
“Within the next 20 years, the Patriot SPU product will be capable of producing leadership successors and shaping the nation’s political landscape in the future,” he added.
Also present at the event were UMNO vice-president Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and party secretary-general Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki. - February 2, 2026
