Views on single party proposal will be considered: Najib

KUALA LUMPUR - Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has assured Umno members that the party will take into consideration their views before deciding on the proposal to turn Barisan Nasional into a single party.

He said Umno would set up a laboratory to look into the proposal and would seek the views of its members.

The Umno president said there were also other suggestions on the party's future direction which need to be considered.

"Any change to Umno needs to be studied in great detail to see if it is acceptable to party members," he told the media after chairing the Umno Supreme Council meeting yesterday.

On the concerns expressed by some Umno members that the party would "disappear" if such a proposal were to be accepted, Najib said: "We understand their concerns and that is why any change will take into account the views of party members."

The proposal that Barisan be turned into a single party was made by several component party leaders after the GE13, which saw MCA, Gerakan and PPP performing badly.

MCA garnered seven parliamentary seats, down from 15 in 2008.

Gerakan won one parliamentary constituency while PPP did not win any of the seats it contested.

Another suggestion is to allow direct individual membership while retaining the current parties in the coalition, which was formed in 1973.

(Source: Asia One)