KUALA LUMPUR, June 21 ― Umno must make its top leaders easily challenged and no longer allow its presidents to win uncontested, said outgoing Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

The Umno presidential hopeful said this was necessary to encourage healthy competition as well as professionalism and accountability.

"Today is a perfect example of what would happen if we protect the president and blindly support him,” Khairy said, referring to Barisan Nasional’s election defeat under former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

"The party's failure is a 'collective responsibility' from all us, including me, for allowing for such a thing to happen,” he said in an interview with Sinar Harian.

Khairy also said Umno should hold an internal election triennially without fail, stressing that the party must be serious about democracy.

Aside from Khairy, vice president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and party stalwart Tan Sri Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah are also vying for the party presidency.

Umno had initially expected to delay its internal elections, but its defeat in the general election forced the party to scramble to conduct the poll in order to avoid possible deregistration.