(Oct 12): Umno members should be more assertive and voice out their concerns over the state of the country, said Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

The Umno deputy president said expressing their thoughts on issues currently affecting the state of the nation should not be construed as going against leaders.

“I am not instigating or provoking them, but Umno and the Malays have a culture where we tend to suppress our feelings.

“What I am asking them is to be more open and express them, which they can do through various platforms, such as at division meetings or elections and other activities.

“Do not be fearful of consequences if you are doing the right thing,” he said at a press conference with former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad at the Perdana Leadership Foundation in Putrajaya today.

The axed deputy prime minister said Islam encouraged its followers to say and do what is right, which should be the guiding principle for all Muslims.

Umno, he said, also did not encourage blind support and as such, members should voice out their concerns without worrying about repercussions.

"They should be more assertive, as much as they are not saying it now, they feel it. It will come to a point when this will happen," he said.

He said the party's annual general assembly in December would be the right platform for members to speak out on matters of concern as all party leaders would be there.

He shrugged off the possibility of being hauled up by the party's disciplinary board for his current actions, saying that members were free to voice their concerns over the state of the country and leadership.

"As concerned citizens, we should not keep quiet. We are not the minority, we are the majority. I see many people who come up to me expressing their concerns. It is time we rally together to save the nation," he said. – The Malaysian Insider