COMMENT | When the grassroots in Umno meet, the name of this convicted felon is freely and regularly used to work up their emotions and garner support.

Mention “justice for Najib Abdul Razak”, and there will be no shortage of clapping and cheering, raising the speaker’s stature and popularity.

From the president to the lower echelons of the party, Umno has been flogging the same phrase for political expediency.

Umno believes and sends out the message that the party’s hopes of returning to its former glory are related to former prime minister Najib getting out of jail.

The latest to join the fray was Johor Umno chairperson Onn Hafiz Ghazi, who at the Pekan Umno meeting on Sunday, described Najib as one of the country’s “best prime ministers” and that what happened to the incarcerated former Pekan MP was very sad.