the SAKMONGKOL JOURNAL

UMNO must re-evaluate its modus operandi. Before- it trivialises people, now it finds it must engage them. In an interactive world, UMNO leadership must adopt new operating procedures.

Practise global benchmarking. With whom do we measure up? With Zimbabwe? With East Timor? With basket case countries so that we can console and comfort ourselves into saying we are better? What's the basic cause for this insular and pompous attitude?

For too long UMNO was drowned in its own arrogance nurtured no doubt by its long unchallenged position. It has managed to continue winning against a background of accommodative expectations. Now expectations are different. The people out there, no more mere digits, are starting to embrace the New Nationalism- love for this country underlined by an intense commitment to make it free from parameters such as bad and lousy governance, misdistribution of income, and an equally intense advocacy of things such as rule of law and democracy.

The new nationalism transcends ethnicity. This is the new reality which UMNO must adapt itself to or perish. UMNO must learn from the histories of grand old parties of other countries. The most recent being LDP, Congress party of India, Golkar of Indonesia, French and Italian governments. Equally important it must learn from governments that have managed to stay in power.

On all significant activities such as managing the economy, competitiveness, transparency and other measures of decent living, is this country as good as or better than the best examples inside or outside, anywhere in the world? How does our government compare for example with the little red dot in the south in certain aspects? Ok, we don't want to measure up to Singapore because it reminds us of what could have been provided such and such are in place. Why don't we compare ourselves with other 1^st world governments such Switzerland or even Australia? If the answer isn't known, opportunities for great improvement are going begging. It's time for us to stop benchmarking ourselves to 3^rd world countries such as Zimbabwe or Papua New Guinea.

Benchmarking involves re-engineering. What does re-engineering mean? The word is the old essential of studying processes from start to finish with the aim of saving time and money and raising effectiveness. How do you make UMNO more effective? Raising effectiveness must also involve raising the quality of leadership across the board- at branch right up to divisions. Reject leadership as a result of being who you are and instead adopt leadership as a result of what you can do. Leaders chosen on the basis of status prefer form to substance, preferring elaborate superfluous processes of pulling ranks. They are always anxious of preserving stature rather than getting things done.

Performance centric leadership redefine quality standards. Certainly, the way branch meetings are held, delegates selected and debates carried out during assemblies can be improved. For example, the party must examine new technology of voting to enable not only a select few to choose leadership, but whole groups of previously sideliners. The process of selecting candidates can be made more objective. Performance can be measured by obejective means rather than relying on prejudicially subjective assessments.

UMNO mustn't be a closeted entity. It must create partnerships. It must embrace the alternative media for instance, which performs the role of 'marketers, suppliers, distributors, subcontractors selling the UMNO Idea.

I was talking to a much respected UMNO veteran who was baffled as to why none in UMNO has seen it fit NOT to press the panic button. UMNO is deteriorating all around and its leaders are in the business as usual mode. Adaptation to new demands is the key mantra and must be pursued with a vengeance. The ends justify the meanness of methods. Shaking up UMNO to its core- reappraisal of its values, its leadership structure, its rapid deployment force, and its response must be carried out urgently. UMNO leadership must learn the concept of compressing time. It must have this sense of urgency which underscores the need to take actions yesterday to accomplish what is required today. Want to carry out reforms on the UMNO constitution? Do it fast and radical. Slowed decisions allow for doubts to creep it and when doubts filter in, procrastination seeps in. The faster, the better. Rapid decisions are generally better than delayed ones - and always better than procrastination.

UMNO must adopt this action mode- Act outside-in. Don't look at the business with the eyes of an insider. How do outsiders - above all customers and suppliers ( rakyat and voters) - regard UMNO? How does UMNO conducts its business, deals with people, with intellectuals, with middle class people and examine what would a man from these rank outsider groups conclude and recommend after surveying the business UMNO carries out with his fresh, unprejudiced eyes? It's most vital to establish the total perception of UMNO.

We come back to what's said at the beginning of my essay. Forget the past. Try living in the past; relying on domestic markets (UMNO support alone) and avoiding transformation in a performance-oriented business that lacks up-to-date technology, it's a wonderful recipe for FAILURE.