Describing party-hopping as unprincipled, Najib said while politicians could hop to another party, there was also the question of whether the voters would punish them, and those who hopped would “usually not survive”.

The Pekan MP said by right, candidates who contested on a certain party’s ticket, and won due to the support and hard work of party members, should remain in that party.

“We must be consistent in our principles, even when we are in the opposition. This is when people will respect us more, rather than we party hop and then have our credibility questioned.

“Don’t be rash and hop to another party. We do not know how it is on the other side. In the past few days, we have heard of people resigning.

“Over there, there can also be turbulence. There is uncertainty,” he said in an interview aired by Nothing to Hide Media. The interview was conducted by Mohd Puad Zarkashi, who headed the propaganda department under the previous government.

To a question by Puad on where things had gone wrong for Umno, resulting in many wanting to continue their struggle for the country in PH, Najib pointed out that all these while, Umno MPs had it good as they were members of the government and had access to allocations and projects.

“But to me, our struggle does not necessarily mean we get access to big allocations. We can adjust our approach so that people will accept, understand and not blame us when we cannot announce allocations.

“Even without being able to make such announcements, it does not mean we cannot be good representatives of the people,” he said.

Last week, 36 elected representatives, senators and division heads in Sabah announced they were leaving Umno, effectively crippling the party’s state chapter which was established in 1991.

Later, several other Umno MPs also announced their departure from the party.

On the mounting pressure towards Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to go on leave due to his court cases and the high number of representatives leaving Umno, Najib, who is former party president, said disputes could be resolved within the party.

“Use internal party processes. Let us do things in a ‘musyawarah’ manner. Even when we have differences in opinion, we can find resolutions which will benefit our party,” he said.

The embattled Umno president is defiant in the face of calls for his resignation by party leaders, saying he would not bow to the demands of a “handful”.

The former deputy prime minister, saying he was abiding by Umno’s constitution, said the demand for him to resign should get the support of two-thirds of delegates if an extraordinary meeting was convened.

On whether Umno can rise again to power, considering the predicament it was in now, Najib said the strength of the party was in its 2.6 million members in 22,000 branches all over the country.

“We are the biggest political party in Malaysia. Why do we feel as though we have no future?

“If in the past, the smallest parties with the right discipline, commitment, strategy, efforts, and loyalty can grow, we are the biggest party. Don’t tell me we cannot rise again.

“If we realise, have the commitment, we come together, have the right strategy, we can do it. But don’t ever feel like there is no tomorrow for Umno. We must be confident that the future is still bright for Umno. Don’t lose faith,” he said.

He said the problem was among the leaders, not the grassroot members, who are demonstrating perseverance, strength and loyalty, even while in opposition.

“They have remained steadfast. Our leaders should learn from the grassroots. Persevere, stay strong and continue the good fight,” he added.

On another matter, Najib said he had to borrow money to pay for his expenses and to post bail amounting to about RM6 million.

He admitted he felt the pressure after being slapped with 39 charges.

“I am under pressure. I could not have imagined this. I had to borrow money from people to cover my expenses and bail money, which is a large sum.

“I will also be spending the next year in and out of the courthouse. But what can I do? This has been carried out by certain quarters against me.

“I will continue to defend myself to the best of my abilities,” he said.

The Pekan MP has been accused of looting billions of ringgit from the embattled state fund 1MDB and has been slapped with 39 charges.

On whether he was confident he would be able to win in court, Najib said his lawyers were confident he would be freed as long as the trials were conducted in a fair manner.