KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 12 -- Umno's annual general assembly ended yesterday with a sense of optimism rarely seen at the party's recent assemblies, as delegates filled the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur with renewed enthusiasm for the party.

The four-day assembly was also notable for Umno's warm welcome to PAS delegates, although some members remained wary of the latter's history of political partnerships that eventually fell apart.

Here are three things we learnt from this year's assembly.

1. Sky-high confidence among Umno delegates

The mood at the World Trade Centre here was noticeably different this year.

A week before the assembly began, Umno secretary-general Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki described it as a "Hari Raya Umno" for delegate...