'We must do away with arguing in the newspapers, as we do not wish to see confrontations between component parties, or else we will all be losers,' he said in an interview with Sin Chew Daily, the country's biggest-selling Chinese newspaper.

Datuk Seri Abdullah said constant public sniping will embarrass the ruling coalition that has been in power for the last 50 years.

It has already coloured public perception at a time when the BN can ill afford it.

The BN will face a by-election in Kuala Terengganu next month, called after Umno MP Razali Ismail died last month. It has named Deputy Home Minister Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh as its candidate.

Parti Islam SeMalaysia is likely to name its candidate today.

The by-election is the second one after the March polls, which saw the BN suffering heavy losses. And its outcome is unpredictable, unlike the last by-election in Permatang Pauh in August where opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was the favourite and won by a landslide.

The upcoming by-election will be a test of the acceptability of BN.

Ironically, its current troubles are caused by attempts to win back voters. The various BN parties have become increasingly vocal and critical of one another to dispel the image of subservience to Umno.

The BN now appears to be a fractious coalition on the verge of falling apart. One component, Sabah Progressive Party, has left and the People's Progressive Party is threatening to follow suit.

Mr Abdullah said that in a multiracial society like Malaysia, any freedom, especially freedom of speech, has its limits.

'I must be like a father, summoning the people involved when such incidents take place, then talking to them and hoping that they can be careful with their words and actions in future. But most of the time, they blame the media for misquoting them,' he said.

He, however, denied that he has lost control of Umno members, when asked about the controversy sparked several months ago by a Penang divisional leader, Mr Ahmad Ismail, who called the Chinese 'squatters' and 'immigrants'.

Mr Abdullah pointed out that other parties also made controversial remarks, including Gerakan women's wing chief Tan Lian Hoe who allegedly spoke about the Malays being migrants. Other controversies included Malaysian Chinese Association deputy president Chua Soi Lek describing the concept of Malay supremacy as irrelevant and Umno Youth chief aspirant Mukhriz Mahathir calling for vernacular schools to be turned into national schools.

Mr Abdullah, who said his final mission before his retirement in March is to repair race relations, is unlikely to be able to bring about significant change in the short time.

Veteran opposition MP Lim Kit Siang said yesterday that Mr Abdullah had made 'most sensible and commendable comments' on nation-building in the interview.

'The greatest pity is that he did not adopt them when he has the real power to influence the government and nation in his heyday as Prime Minister,' he wrote in his blog.

The BN will hold a special convention - its first such meeting - in February to find ways to fix its weaknesses. Its Youth wing plans to table a working paper on measures to reduce racial and religious tensions. Its deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin, who is Mr Abdullah's son-in-law, said the problems have to be tackled collectively.

'We have to find a way where we do not comment on issues just to please the interests of our respective communities or members when we have to run for party elections. Often, these comments are made at the expense of the feelings of other component parties,' he was quoted as saying in The New Straits Times yesterday.

carolynh@sph.com.sg