Umno members should observe the concept of lifelong loyalty, that is to be born, to grow up and to die with Umno, the sacred party of the Malays, party president Najib Razak said.

He said this would not be difficult for Umno members, given their love for the party, and hence should stay united in any given situation.

"The move taken by Umno founder Onn Jaafar to quit Umno in 1951, the crisis which led to the party being banned, and the Team A-Team B split in the 1980s, did not shake Umno, which is why it is important for every member of Umno to love and stay loyal to the party."

The prime minister said this in the 'Exclusive With Prime Minister' programme hosted by Sayed Munawar Sayed Mohd Mustar, telecast live on TV1 tonight in conjunction with Umno's 70th anniversary tomorrow.

Najib said that Umno was a resilient party and had remained stable despite the various attacks made by the opposition.

Najib said Umno should feel the 'pulse of the people' by serving the people at all levels, as compared to the opposition parties which were only good at making promises.

Umno must change by making internal reform to ensure that the party would remain relevant and compatible with the political transformation, which occurs at all time, he said.

"Umno in the past is not the same as Umno in today's environment. Thus, we must adjust Umno in terms of approach and methodology, without changing its fundamentals, values, principles and objectives," he said.

Meantime, Najib said Umno members should conquer the social media in order to correct the negative perception created by various quarters against the government.

"This is not an option ... we need to conquer the cyberspace, we're doing it through Umno information technology unit. I hereby call on Umno members at all levels to be actively involved in cyberspace," he said.

"Although Umno is a Malay and bumiputera party, but it is not a racist party. Umno is the pillar of all BN component parties," he said.

On the issue of 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), Najib said it was a business problem which had become a political issue to discredit him as prime minister.

"Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister (Adel Al-Jubeir) had recently admitted that the donation made to me was indeed from Saudi Arabia. Four years ago, the government had proposed to declare the source of political funds, but it was rejected by the opposition," he said.

The prime minister also said that the government had managed the country's economy well by taking early steps to diversify the sources of national revenue and not just depend on the revenue from the oil and gas industry.

- Bernama