KUALA LUMPUR – Former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin praised the courage of current Umno Youth Chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh for inviting him to attend the National Roundtable Dialogue 1.0 (Rimbun 1.0) organised by the party’s youth wing.
Khairy made an appearance at Menara Dato’ Onn after a long absence from the Umno headquarters following his expulsion from the party.
"Finally, I’d like to thank Umno Youth for their bravery, for two reasons.
"Firstly, for boldly gathering and organising Rimbun 1.0. Others didn’t do it, but Umno Youth did because they care about the country’s future.
"Secondly, for having the courage today to invite KJ here,” he said on Friday.
In response, Akmal said the decision to invite Khairy to the event was made for the sake of the party’s future.
"We dared to invite KJ because of Umno’s future, Insya-Allah
"I don’t know what will happen next, maybe I’ll get banned or something. If that happens, invite me to Keluar Sekejap (KS)," he joked.
Previously, Khairy had reportedly expressed his desire to rejoin Umno directly to the party’s president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
The matter was revealed by an Umno leader close to the former health minister, according to Sinar.
However, Zahid denied claims that he had invited Khairy to return to the party.
It was understood that Khairy had conveyed his intention to rejoin Umno during an informal meeting with Zahid at the wedding reception of the daughter of Perlis Umno Chairman Datuk Rozabil Abdul Rahman, recently.
Zahid clarified that his encounter with Khairy was purely coincidental and did not involve any political discussion.
Meanwhile, during the Rimbun 1.0 session, Khairy shared his views on the Character Formation Programme announced by the Education Ministry.
He said the programme’s implementation needed careful review to ensure it went beyond mere moral or religious instruction.
"I just want to share a view, the teaching method must be right. If character education is focused too much on memorisation for exams, it won’t achieve its goal.
"It must be interactive so that students truly understand the issues — for example, learning about harassment and violence.
"It’s not just about the subject itself, but how it’s taught and whether it aligns with its intended purpose," he said.