KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 12 — Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today said that in order for the coalition to win the 15th general election (GE15), its members must act as a group rather than as individuals.

In a post on his Facebook page, Ahmad Zahid called for BN members to shift their focus away from individual wins and to stop belittling and questioning the authority of their fellow members.

“Without the party logo, which we use as a shield to win elections, who are we?

“After the 2018 election (GE14), we found that the structure and hierarchy of the party’s leadership were important to create a direction along which we now recover and rise.

“So do not destroy BN from within in the name of individual populists,” he said.

He also called for BN members to refrain from making populist and personally beneficial statements while criticising the party.

“Whatever it is, put BN’s win first,” he said.

He reminded BN members that the reason the coalition is competing in GE15 is to encourage confidence in the people that BN is the best choice for the country and its future, not other parties.

“BN’s win as a collective is much more meaningful than an individual win,” he added.

Garnering sympathy for oneself at the expense of BN’s chances overall was not a smart move, he went on to say.

He pointed to BN’s losses in the 2008 elections (GE12) as an example of what to avoid, saying that criticism by two-time former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad of the involvement of “level four boys” in the government had damaged the coalition’s reputation.

He went on to call for BN members to learn from the heavy losses incurred in past elections by uniting to focus on a win for BN in GE15 and not allow any room for criticism by its rivals.

Last night, Khairy Jamaluddin reportedly said he wished to clean up Umno’s image and admitted disliking a few of his party colleagues, adding that if he wins Sungai Buloh he will clean up the party’s image.

He reportedly went on to attribute being assigned to contest Sungai Buloh as punishment for being a reformist in Umno who is unable to keep quiet.