UMNO will continue to carry out transformation to fulfill the aspiration of the people, including the Malays, besides protecting economic and national interests, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said.

The Prime Minister described the birth of UMNO on May 11, 1946 as the first major transformation for the Malays and nation building.

Najib, who is also UMNO president, pointed out that the party had pioneered the country's economic transformation as a response to the transformation that occurred at the global level.

"The UMNO leadership is not only committed to but also believe that only by undertaking transformation can we continue to be relevant and lead the country's direction," he said when opening the 64th UMNO General Assembly here Thursday.

However, he said UMNO's transformation would not succeed if the ideas and changes were only being practiced at the top level because they should also filter down to every member of the party.

Emphasising that UMNO was implementing actual transformation in an inclusive manner, Najib said this could be seen through the appointment of additional members of the UMNO Supreme Council representing the younger generation, intellectuals, religious groups and technocrats, among others.

In his policy speech themed 'Charting the Future' (Mewajah Masa Depan), he said basically, every UMNO member was an agent of transformation which reflected the new political direction of the country's politics.

UMNO must strengthen the party and its foundation to buttress the Barisan Nasional (BN) and country so that the party could not only continue to administer the country for the next five years, but hopefully for the next 50 or even 100 years to come.

Addressing almost 3,000 Umno delegates from the whole country, Najib said although BN had recaptured Kedah in the last general election besides strengthening its position again in Perak, there was still much that needed to be done.

"At this assembly, we renew our willpower and redraw our formula for success based on the five elements of Umno's transformation," he said.

According to Najib, filling the transformation included efforts in strengthening the economy of the Malays and Bumiputera; upholding the Syariah objectives; strengthening the party cadre; preparing the transformative machinery; and to draw up the UMNO Key Performance Indicators or KPI.

Touching on the efforts to strengthen the Malay and Bumiputera economy, he said they should be the agenda of the national thrust based on their position as the majority race.

He said it would be pointless if the country progressed while the majority race was not looked after.

On the principles of Maqasid Syariah that championed and protected the five main pillars namely religion, life, brain, property and race, Najib said UMNO had never stopped championing the sanctity and symbols of Islam.

In addition, he drew attention to the phenomenon where the younger generation was getting closer to religion and the pensioners were beginning to go to the surau and mosques regularly.

"Thus, UMNO members must get closer to this group. It is also good for them to go to the mosques and surau," he said.

On the UMNO cadre programme, Najib said it must include aspects such as creativity, personal skills, deep-thinking culture and high-tech skills.

This is aimed to facilitate the delivery of party and government policies so that they were accepted by the people and would be responsive in studying and resolving the problems of the grassroots.

"The cadre programme particularly involved the young generation in facing the coming general election which cannot be delayed," he said.

On the need to prepare the UMNO transformative machinery, Najib said UMNO must master the new media tools such as Facebook and the smartphones to deliver UMNO information, defend party and government policies and refute allegations by the opposition.

"In fact, I believe the smartphones will become the most important instrument in determining whether the party wins or loses in future elections. We cannot lag behind and allow the opposition a free hand.

"Like it or not, we must be the main player in the new technology. The fact is that in the political world, perception is usually more important than reality. Like it or not, we must tackle it," Najib said.

On filling the transformation through the UMNO KPI, the Prime Minister said it would be introduced at the branch, division and state levels.

"Only through the determination of the KPI, we can be more prepared to win the Parliamentary and State seats that we had lost recently besides retaining and strengthening the (party's) position in the constituencies that we had won previously and subsequently draw up the work plan to capture opposition strongholds," he said.

Najib said he wanted every branch, division and state to be monitored and audited periodically to assess their performance and achievements.

Through this method, he said, any issue, problem or non-compliance that cropped up could be traced, and corrective action could be taken immediately.

"This KPI becomes the yardstick for the party's objectives which will be the report card for the party leaders. Get down on the ground to meet the voters, prove to the people that Umno is a party that is serious in championing the cause of the people," he added.