Abdullah seeks to postpone party elections, Supreme Council expected to say "NO"

In a desperate attempt to hold on to power, Umno President Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has called for a special Supreme Council meeting tomorrow (Friday, Sept 26) to postpone the Umno General Assembly to June next year.

A majority of the Umno Supreme Council members, however, are expected to reject the proposal outright.

Several news portals and websites have been giving the impression that the idea for the postponement of the General Assembly came from Deputy President Dato' Sri Mohd Najib Tun Razak. That's totally untrue.

Why should Najib seek a postponement of the General Assembly when he is certain that he will get overwhelming support from the divisions for the post of party president?

Abdullah's support in Umno has hit rock bottom. He is now worried that he may not even get the minimums 58 nominations required for him to defend his Presidency. Observers says that it will be embarassing for Abdullah to get only 58 nominations considering the fact that he is party President. In oreder to continue to lead the party and country effectively, he should get nominations from at least two-third of the total number of divisions.

Abdullah's lack of vision, nepotism and cronyism as well as poor economic policies are to be blamed for the dwindling confidence in his leadership. He has agreed to hand over his premiership to Najib in 2010, but umno members fear that if he continues to lead the country until then, Umno and Barisan Nasional will not have enough time to reinvent itself to face the 2013 General Election.

The longer Abdullah remains in power, the lesser the support of the masses for BN.

Barisan Nasional experienced the most humiliating defeat in the country's history in the recent General Election. It lost five States - Penang, Perak, Selangor, Kelantan and Kedah to the Opposition. It also lost all but one Parliamentary seat in the Federal Territory.

Barisan Nasional needs a new leader to regain these States.