Mahathir rules out working with PR to oust Najib

KUALA LUMPUR — Despite a common desire to oust Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, Dr Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday that he would not cooperate with the opposition.

The former Prime Minister said the problem was with ruling party United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) and did not involve other parties, especially the opposition.

“I will not work with anyone to bring down Najib, especially not the opposition. My problem is with UMNO... the members have expressed their support for Najib,” he said, referring to UMNO leaders who have rallied behind Mr Najib despite Dr Mahathir’s criticism of the Prime Minister.

Democratic Action Party (DAP) veteran leader Lim Kit Siang earlier said he was willing to work with his nemesis Dr Mahathir to “save Malaysia” from current policies that might take the country “down a slippery slope”. But there is no consensus even within the DAP over Mr Lim’s suggestion.

DAP lawmaker Ramkarpal Singh Deo pointed out that Dr Mahathir’s desire to oust Mr Najib was only to “save UMNO”. “There can be no doubt that Malaysia needs to be saved. While I agree that Najib ought to go, I cannot agree with the means by which Dr Mahathir proposes to do so,” Mr Ramkarpal said in a statement.

“Asserting pressure on a democratically elected Prime Minister to step down cannot be democratic and it is high time that the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) come together at this very critical time against UMNO and Barisan Nasional (BN).”

Cautioning that working with Dr Mahathir would mean the PR maintaining the status quo and allowing “corruption to continue”, Mr Ramkarpal added: “I am firmly of the view that saving Malaysia can mean only a new clean, accountable and transparent government.”

He stressed that the PR has to live up to its promise to Malaysians of being the alternative and democratically oust Mr Najib and BN through the ballot box.

However, at a time when the PR is rife with internal dispute especially over the issue of hudud, it is unlikely to be able to pose a credible challenge to BN. PR component parties Parti Keadilan Rakyat and DAP are opposed to Parti Islam Se-Malaysia’s push to implement hudud, or the Islamic criminal law that prescribes punishment such as amputation for crimes such as stealing, in Kelantan.

In recent months, the country’s longest-serving Prime Minister has launched a relentless tirade against Mr Najib, urging him to step down over the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal and for continuing the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M) cash vouchers, among other issues.

Dr Mahathir has demanded answers to the 1MDB controversy, which revolves around the state-owned investment vehicle reportedly amassing a RM42 billion (S$15.6 billion) debt, and has called for the abolition of BR1M, a one-off cash payment of RM500 to low-income households, citing the futility of the cash assistance.

Shrugging off Dr Mahathir’s recent attacks on Mr Najib, Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said yesterday that the only way BN and UMNO could withstand such attacks is by staying united, as criticism of the federal government would continue until the “end times”.

“In this matter, if we were to answer all the criticism and allegations, we won’t see any solution,” he said at a news conference in Putrajaya.

Mr Hishammuddin, who is also UMNO vice-president, advised Putrajaya’s detractors from within the party and those linked with it to have the party’s unity in mind when airing their dissatisfaction in public. AGENCIES