KUALA LUMPUR: Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani today has urged the party's machinery to throw their weight behind potential party candidates to ensure Umno's victory in the upcoming elections.

Johari, who is also Titiwangsa member of parliament, said this was because a good candidate might not win if there was no support from the machinery.

He also highlighted former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's situation when he lost his election deposit due to his party's weak machinery.

"Having a strong machinery is a step for Barisan Nasional (BN) to win in the elections. Even if we have a candidate with a good track record, we cannot move forward if we don't have good and strong machinery.

"Hence, I would also like to suggest that if we want to nominate a candidate, we (the top leadership) must also ensure that these candidates are informed a term in advance to enable them to prepare for the elections.

"We will then review their performance and if they cannot perform, they will be replaced," he said in his winding-up speech for the 2023 Umno general assembly at World Trade Centre today.

Johari added that the party must also review its plan strategically ahead of the elections to ensure that Umno could be revived and return to its strong position.

He said it was possible for the party to achieve this provided that it fostered the 'winning' mentality among its members.

"To compare with other political parties, we have the biggest infrastructure in the country, with 191 divisions, 3.5 million members and 22,274 branches.

"This is why we need to give our best for the state elections and be responsible (for the position Umno is in now)." - Reporting by Adib Povera, Hana Naz Harun, Nor Ain Mohamed Radhi and Qistina Sallehuddin

https://www.nst.com.my/news/politics/2023/06/918679/strong-machinery-step-forward-revive-umno-says-veep