UMNO must move out of its comfort zone and take extraordinary steps, including generating new ideas, to enable the party to regain its dominance in the country’s political landscape, party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi says.

He said that to ensure this, Umno must no longer be seen as a party rooted in nostalgia, but instead must undergo rebranding, including the adoption of political marketing strategies.

He said this approach should not only involve Umno, but also other parties within the Barisan Nasional coalition.

“We must think about our direction not only 20 years from now, but also the fact that in about 22 months we will be facing a general election. Therefore, from now on, we must have good products, branding and marketing.

“We must do something extraordinary, because if the people make the same decisions as in the 2018 and 2022 general elections – the period of our decline – I fear that 20 years from now, when Umno reaches 100 years of age, we will have to close shop,” he said.

He said this in his speech at the first anniversary dinner of the Umno Political School (SPU) in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.

Also present were Umno vice-president and Pahang Mentri Besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail and Umno secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also Deputy Prime Minister and Rural and Regional Development Minister, said efforts to strengthen Umno and Barisan Nasional must also involve countering negative narratives and perceptions levelled against them, which have resulted in voters distancing themselves from the party.

“Even if our product is good, but external perceptions of us remain negative, Umno will not go anywhere. This perception is our collective nightmare, so we must dismantle it properly,” he said.

Commenting on the SPU, Ahmad Zahid said graduates of the programme are Umno’s future leaders and also serve as the party’s young thinkers in helping to analyse issues and provide input to the party’s top leadership across various aspects.