Finally, Khairy Jamaluddin or KJ admits that he may apply to return to Umno but only if Umno was willing to change and that he, KJ, would never be a ‘yes-man’.

In this article, I am wondering what kind of change would KJ expect of Umno of which he was a part of for two decades.

Now, I am 62 and will be 63 in the new year’s January, and I happen to know a lot of things that Umno was doing while KJ was part of the party.

Perhaps the things that I witnessed, read or heard would be the change that both KJ and I would dearly love to see.

Now, let’s list them. Shall we?

I remember one young Umno member again calling the rakyat ‘beruk-beruk’ when the people were demonstrating to demand justice and reform.

That same young man, I think, also uses derogatory innuendos of Anwar Ibrahim with his ‘main belakang’ expressions.

I am very sure both KJ and I remember these things and hope that Umno of the present would change and respect both the rakyat and any human being with dignity.

Then I remember Tun M using the word ‘pendatang’ so many times, but I do not remember any Umno leader advising the old man from using it. Do you?

I forgot who were the big guns in Umno then or who the Youth leader was. I do hope that future Umno leader would not insult our rakyat like Tun M anymore.

I do hope that Khairy Jamaluddin would re-join Umno.

It seems the new Zahid Hamidi is susceptible to change but I do not know how the likes of Akmal Saleh would feel about this kind of change.

Would it be difficult for Umno to talk to DAP or Chinese without pursed lips and wagging fingers or using derogatory words like Nyonya Tua?

I hope that when KJ comes back in, he would champion the change that he himself said he would want.

Then, I also remember one handsome and good-looking Umno big wig insulting Nga Kor Ming, who was acting as Speaker in Parliament, by calling him purposely as ‘Taliban’. But after being advised, this handsome leader tarik balik.

For me, the act of tarik balik when you purposely use the words will probably be recorded by the Angels or Malaikat Raqib and Atiq as an intentional and a purposeful act in the Hereafter.

Then of course there is a load of corruption during the time KJ was an active member and a minor big wig.

There was corruption of military helicopters which I am not sure were delivered full, or if are still in good condition today.

I remember a fleet of war ships that were supposed to be delivered in complete ready for action but again we the rakyat don’t know if these ships can move on water or if it even has a propeller.

I am sure this is what KJ would mean by change so that our country’s safety is not compromised by submarines that won’t submerge, or warships that can’t fire its cannons or helicopters that can or cannot fly well in combat.

We heard of some military tanks rosak in the middle of the road, and all this sub-par quality makes us Malaysians wonder if we will ever survive an invasion of a big country or a little one.

Yes, and finally the big issue of 1MDB.

Is Najib innocent? If Najib was innocent, why have we never heard any protests or questions from top Umno leaders except Mahiaddin and Shafie?

If KJ believes that Najib was guilty, then I am sure this is what he means by change in Umno and not being a yes-man.

I do hope that Khairy Jamaluddin would re-join Umno by making an appeal. I do hope that KJ would continue his exceptionally popular podcast ‘Keluar Sekejap’ and begin a new one called ‘Masuk Kembali’.

Like KJ, I pray for a changed Umno and that he would never be a yes-man, just like Akmal Saleh.

For the sake of a new and better Malaysia, I hope all of us Malaysians, including KJ and Umno, must change ourselves in order to be worthy of our beloved country and as a beacon of hope for our new generations, now and in the future.

(Prof Dr. Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi is Professor of Architecture at a local university and his writing reflects his own personal opinion entirely.)