He said this would ensure that it was in line with the Malaysian Youth Policy tabled by former Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin which, among others, had proposed that the age limit of youths should be capped at 30 years old.
“While Pakatan Harapan, component parties are competing to field younger candidates (and being very good at it), Umno is still stuck in the past, still clinging onto the older self-professed individuals squabbling for the position of youth chief.
“It is understandable that the age below 30 is too much to ask for, but allowing it to start low, at least below 40 is a good head start. I believe that Umno has an abundance of candidates of quality that they can endorse who are below the age of 40. We need true reform for our country to have a stronger opposition and we have to start now,” Syed Saddiq said in an open letter to Umno Youth.
The Muar MP said while he admired the candidates for the post of Umno Youth chief, Asyraf Wajdi and Khairul Azwan, both were already 42 years old.
He said these candidates did not fit the definition of youth that was proposed.
Syed Saddiq said the situation was made worse when 48-year-old Jamal Yunos, who is wanted by the authorities, also expressed his intention to vie for the post.
“This is a clear straying off what Khairy Jamaluddin had promised back in 2015, as now we can see that the Malaysian Youth Policy seemed to be a populist policy to only attract youth votes.
“The situation that we see now is also against the spirit that Umno Youth itself portrayed when they demanded Najib Razak resign from his chair for the sake of a new and reformed Umno,” he said.
Syed Saddiq said Umno Youth had always been a platform for new and upcoming stars to station themselves as the next bright leader for the country.
He cited as examples Hishamuddin Hussein who was 38 when he assumed the role of Umno chief and Khairy who became a leader of the wing at the age of 33.
“There is a glaring trend and I think the trend of electing a candidate that fits the criteria of the definition of youth should keep on progressing,” he added.
Umno will be holding its elections for the heads of its party wings on June 23.