MAHATHIR THE BIGGEST ‘LIABILITY’ IN TOWN – AND YET HADI & CO WITH BERSATU IN TOW RUSH TO CLING TO HIM – AS ANWAR’S ‘MALAYSIA MADANI’ MOVEMENT GAINS GROUND AMONG THE POPULACE – BUT WHAT CAN 98-YEAR-OLD DR M, WHO COULD NOT DEFEND HIS LANGKAWI SEAT & EVEN LOST HIS DEPOSIT, DO FOR THEM – OTHER THAN PLAY A ROLE IN THEIR BANKRUPT OF POLITICAL CAPITAL, PSY-WAR GAMES TO STAY ON THE NEWS RADAR AHEAD OF STATE POLLS
Dr M is a liability now, says Zahid
The Umno president wishes Dr Mahathir Mohamad ‘all the best’ with his ‘Malay Proclamation’.
PETALING JAYA: Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has described Dr Mahathir Mohamad as the “latest liability” in the political landscape, in dismissing the former prime minister’s “Malay Proclamation”.
Zahid said the unity government had greater “meaning” than Mahathir’s proclamation, though the latter had managed to obtain the support of PAS and Bersatu leaders as well as individuals such as Annuar Musa and Zuraida Kamaruddin.
“I wish PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and Mahathir all the best following their recent meeting. I say this because we all know that Mahathir is the latest liability in Malaysian politics,” Berita Harian quoted him as saying.
“This is proven by his loss in Langkawi (during the 15th general election) where he lost his deposit. In fact, none of the candidates from his party won a seat.
He was commenting on Hadi and other PAS leaders signing Mahathir’s “Malay Proclamation” in the presence of the former Langkawi MP to signify their support for his call for Malays to unite and “save” the community.
Three Bersatu leaders – deputy president Ahmad Faizal Azumu, information chief Razali Idris and Supreme Council member Iskandar Dzulkarnain Abdul Khalid – have also signed the proclamation in their personal capacities.
Zahid called for an end to political instability, saying this had greatly affected the country over the past four years with Malaysia seeing three prime ministers in a period of five years.
The deputy prime minister added that all political parties should heed the Johor ruler’s call for political stability to ensure the nation could progress and grow its economy.
“The government is stable now with 148 MPs supporting it, and that (support) needs to increase further.” FMT
PM’s aide: Putsch will lead to ‘Prihatin’, ‘Keluarga M’sia’-type instability
The country will see a return to an era of political instability experienced during the reign of the previous two premiers if the current administration is toppled, said an aide to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Azman Abidin told Malaysiakini that previous rounds of political instabilities had caused a lot of damage to the country and must be avoided at all costs.
“We cannot afford another ‘Prihatin’ or ‘Keluarga Malaysia’-style instability. It causes chaos and economic disruption. Investor confidence will be shattered, and equity markets battered.
“The motivation of the civil servants will take a hit if the country’s policies are not certain.
“Enough is enough. Wait five years. Let us do what we have to do then challenge us. Let the public evaluate in the next election,” Anwar’s political secretary said.
Azman (above) was referring to the short-lived administrations of Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri Yaakob which were marked by the “Prihatin” and “Keluarga Malaysia” slogans respectively.
Muhyiddin was forced to resign after 17 months in office in August 2021 while Ismail Sabri dissolved Parliament after 15 months at the helm, although he could have waited another seven months.
Recently, several allegations surfaced suggesting plots were underway to oust Anwar as prime minister.
This included a report which claimed that several by-elections were being engineered to reduce the number of BN MPs and a cryptic message from Bersatu supreme council member Muhammad Faiz Na’aman which fuelled speculation of a plot.
Azman urged Faiz and other political leaders to consider the interest of the rakyat and the country over personal ambitions.
“They are raising such issues because their support levels are dipping. Now they are trying to inspire their supporters ahead of the upcoming state elections.
“The Malaysia Madani movement is on the rise and is being accepted by the rakyat. That worries them,” Azman added. MKINI
Hadi: PAS met Dr M over ‘common grounds’ despite past wrongs
PAS agreed to meet with Dr Mahathir Mohamad due to many shared common grounds now, despite the former premier’s past wrongs against the party, said Abdul Hadi Awang.
Taking to Facebook, the PAS president revealed that the meeting with Mahathir was to discuss Malay unity, among others.
“Although he (Mahathir) had wronged PAS, there are many common grounds that must be taken into account, to unite and fulfil shared duties in Islam.
“Among the discussions was how it’s a must for Malay Muslims to unite as Malaysia’s majority original residents and a majority in the multicultural society,” said Hadi, who described Mahathir as an experienced statesperson.
Hadi said there is a need to distinguish and explain differences between how Islam embraces nationalism as a concept according to God’s rules and its role in society, and how it is actually practised today as an ideology.
Hadi’s statement follows media reports of the meeting where he, together with several other PAS leaders, signed Mahathir’s “Malay People’s Proclamation” – a document which urged Malays to unite to “save” their race.
The Malay People’s Proclamation is a 12-point document which claimed that Malays never controlled the economy and have “lost” political control.
It goes on to state that the Malay race has to be “revived” and “saved” by uniting Malays by putting aside their political differences.
In the past, Mahathir had criticised PAS’ approach to politics as being divisive of the Malay community. MKINI
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