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Q: How did you feel when you heard the news that you had received 47 nominations?
A: I am happy that the divisions gave me the go-ahead to contest the post of deputy president. The nominations show that democracy is very much alive in Umno. All those who offered themselves, including Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Tan Sri Muhammad Muhammad Taib, have also qualified.

Members will now be able to choose the best of the three for the post. I believe Umno members are wise enough to see who can work together for the betterment of the party.

Q: Would the unprecedented three-cornered fight for the Umno deputy president's post lead to three factions in the party?
A: I don't think so. In Umno, we are all like a family. Blood is thicker than water. Party members will surely be competing among themselves but it is done in a manner which will not jeopardise solidarity in the party.
I believe that in the March elections, we will come together as one family to vote for the best person to helm the party.

There is no worry about the emergence of camps among those vying for the No. 2 post. We feel that the most important thing is the party and we cannot create disunity and factions in the biggest political party in the country.

I wish to remind myself and my counterparts in the contest to always think of the interests of the party in our efforts to gain support.

We have to have integrity, always be sincere, work hard and be willing to lift the party at all times in our endeavour to win the post of deputy president.

If we are able to do this, I believe the people will return to Umno and Barisan Nasional.

Q: Much has been said about money politics in Umno and the Anti-Corruption Agency is also investigating it. How can money politics be curbed in Umno?
A: There are a lot of people talking about this now. Measures have been taken but money politics seems to be spreading like a disease in the party. This could be due to greed, power and the election system.

The answer is simple. We have to implement a two-pronged strategy.

The first is to stress integrity and for the Umno elections to be held in the manner of the general election. This means that the more than three million party members will be eligible to vote and decide who they want to lead the party.

We have the experience and resources to conduct the party polls the way the general election is conducted. Furthermore, we can make use of information technology in the voting process to make it easier.

With all party members being voters, I believe money politics can be eradicated.

This is only my proposal and it has to be first looked into by the Umno supreme council before it is brought to the general assembly to be effected as it involves changes to certain clauses in the Umno constitution.

Q: A consensus is growing that the global economic downturn needs to be addressed immediately. What are your views on the measures that have to be taken?
A: Managing the economy of a state and a nation by just focusing on economic growth without taking into account other factors, such as unemployment and poverty, is simple. Likewise, it is also easy to focus on combating inflation without looking at economic growth and people's incomes.

We have to strike a balance between economic growth, increasing GDP (gross domestic product) and household income, reducing the unemployment rate and also keeping inflation at a manageable level. This is difficult to achieve.

Take the Malacca economy, for example. From 2000 to last year, we managed to strike a delicate balance and what we have done in the state could be implemented at the federal level.

Over this period, Malacca's annual GDP grew by 5.9 per cent, per capita GDP rose by 5.6 per cent a year, household income went up by a staggering 51.4 per cent, poverty level fell to 1.8 per cent from 5.7 per cent (1999), unemployment rate was the lowest in the country at less than two per cent, inflation stood at 2.4 per cent a year, and rural-urban income disparity was brought down to 3.4 per cent.

Investors are also coming to Malacca, with the value of investments increasing by 32 per cent from RM235 million last year to RM309 million this year.

Is there any other state in the country with such an impressive record?

Q: How are you planning to replicate the state's success on the nation and what about the global economic situation?
A: I do not foresee any problems in instituting the ideas, measures and policies which have led to the success of the state at the federal level.

I have been involved hands-on from the planning stages right up to the implementation stages in bringing change to the state's economic development.

I have first-hand experience in managing the economy and this could be used for the betterment of the country.

With regard to the economic situation, as leaders, we have to study and monitor the main problems faced by the world, which have a direct impact on the people. Then we outline concrete measures to overcome it.

There are six main areas we need to address -- the credit crunch, energy supply, food supply, climate change, clean water sources and inflation/stagflation.

We have to address these problems at once before it is too late. In doing so, the people must know what is happening, and they should contribute to resolving the issues.