Umno Will Rise Again, Says Abdullah...

Umno President Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Friday night he would not do anything that could harm the party.

"I'm committed to restoring Umno," he said in his speech at a dinner in conjunction with his one-day visit to Kelantan.

"I will not let Umno to be divided. In the north (of Peninsular Malaysia), Umno was founded by my father and grandfather," he said echoeing the sentiment voiced by his deputy, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Datuk Seri Najib told reporters in London on Thursday that he was a "true Umno man" who would not risk destroying the party his father built. (read here).

Najib also said he would not challenge Abdullah for the Umno president's post and as he believed in "the traditional way of leadership transition".

Abdullah said, like his deputy, he would not do anything that could split the party.He said despite the results of the March 8 general election, Umno's strength remained intact.

"I'm saddened by the election results but we still have the energy. We are still strong," he said, adding that party members should not be disheartened by the results.

"Umno has gone through various trials and tribulations even before independence but Thank God, Umno is still strong because we have the fighters who are ready to defend the race and country," he said.

Abdullah said in his visits abroad, he was asked how the Barisan Nasional (BN) administer the country without the strength of a two-third majority in parliament.

"But they said the BN did win comfortably and that there was no reason for the government not to do anything to develop the country and the people," he said - Bernama.

(...like the phoneix rising from its ashes? Dream on Pak Lah! At the current rate Umno is in - a mess, a state of crisis and in a denial mode - I have my doubts. The results of the 12th general election showed the domination of Malay politics through Umno, which has long been regarded as unchallenged, is a myth.)