“There was too much finger-pointing and less of the ‘do-it-yourself’ (attitude) or what we could do,” he said during the 4th Bersatu annual general assembly at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (Mitec) here today.

“We preferred to let others take the initiative so that we can blame them if things did not work out.”

He said while the state PN did not possess all the necessary resources and had to mobilise help from outside the state, there was nonetheless a tendency to blame the local party machinery whenever there were any shortcomings.

Among other weaknesses, Faizal said, was that party members were still stuck in their old practice of interacting only among themselves instead of engaging the voters.

“There is also the view that we didn’t go down to the grasssroots — we preferred to act like VIPs.

“As I said earlier, we must go back to the basics. There are two basics in elections — ‘susun kerusi’ and ‘letak bendera’ (to arrange chairs and place flags),” he said, referring to the humility and hands-on attitude that all party members regardless of their positions needed to cultivate.

Faizal said as a result, these factors affected the team spirit, causing the party to lose 26 of the 28 seats it had contested.

“The Melaka elections proved that there is strong support for Abah and PN but that our machinery and outreach must be strengthened,” he said referring to Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin by the term ‘Abah’ or father.

“However, I must state here that the state polls had also actually opened the eyes of the people and voters that PN is serious and determined to lead the country.”

He added that, coupled with the success in the Sabah elections, the party must build on the momentum gained in Melaka.