Sour grapes Dr M fast losing friends even within Umno

Former premier Mahathir Mohamad has made a most presumptuous conclusion that the AnwarIbrahim-Najib Razak mega-debate will be a waste of time. It is not true, of course, because there are several major issues that need to be highlighted and explained to the people. And who better to do this that the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader of a nation?

Mahathir also said that Malaysians are not matured enough, unlike the Americans. What an insult! If true, it is a reflection on Mahathir's own 22-year rule and confirms the arguments that he suppressed the people's growth with deliberate policies to keep them backwards so that he and his cronies can carry their own vested interests.

Of course, Malaysians are matured enough to understand the differences between good and bad and between right and wrong. That's why Mahathir is so reviled these days because the people can tell his insincerity and misdeeds towards them! Of course to Mahathir, this only means that they are 'immature' and easily 'misled' for not appreciating his goodness and magnanimity.

But really Malaysians are much smarter than he thinks. Foe example, they know the most important is to get him to account for and bring bring back the RM888bil in illicit funds carted away from the nation by unscrupulous and corrupt people.

Admits, but doesn't want to face up to the problems

Mahathir also said that debates won’t solve the problems faced by the people. So on one hand, he admits that there are many unsolved problems faced by the people. But on the other, he doesn't want these problems to be faced openly.  At 55-years-old, Malaysia is more than matured enough to face problems head on.

The debate can highlight all the woes faced by the people and Najib can tell us how he plans to solve them or at least acknowledge the problems and give an indication on how he can tackle these, and make the minister responsible accountable to the people. A debate like this is always good as it keeps those in the government on their toes - working for the people as they rightfully should. So far, the BN has had it too good. They have 'bermaharajalela' too much and have the impression that it is the people who should bow to them and work for them instead!

There is no point in sweeping these national problems under the carpet. This way, whether BN or Pakatan Rakyat loses in the 13th general election, at least the loser goes down knowing what killed them. Furthermore, in Parliament, lawmakers do raise issues, engage in debate in a bid to resolve problems. What's so scary for Mahathir, or is he upset that Anwar never challenged him to take part? This may not be far from the truth because Mahathir is well-known for his love of being in the public eye - 'loved' by all!

Is Dr M angling for an invite from Anwar too?

Mahathir then continues to say that Anwar is a chameleon who will change himself to suit the Chinese, the Indians and the Muslims depending on which group he is addressing. Err... has Mahathir not seen Najib wearing the 'kurta' when he attended the Thaipusam at Batu Caves recently? Not only did Najib say nice things to the Indians, he also wore nice Indian clothes to suit the occasion.

Also did not Mahathir realize that in Najib's Thaipusam speech, he focused only on the issues pertaining to the Indian community and promised them that if the Indians help Najib, then Najib will help them!

If Mahathir is such a genius, can he show just one example where in his 22 years in power, he had addressed the Malays using Tamil pleasantries, wearing the 'kurta', talked about Hinduism and concentrated on all the problems faced by the Indian community in Malaysia?

Mahathir then said Anwar and his supporter just want to Anwar to be the prime minister. Well, is Mahathir saying that he himself did not want to be the prime minister and all the UMNO supporters who supported him did not want him to be the prime minister either?

Then why he was so eager to be the UMNO president and created so much problems for the late Tunku Abdul Rahman, and later when Tengku Razaleigh challenged him and the court found fault in UMNO, Mahathir rushed to pull strings to have UMNO revived as UMNO Baru after it was de-registered?

Dr M has become a 'cartoon'

Why so much brouhaha, why not just let Tengku Razaleigh be the UMNO president then? Ku Li was a decent guy, even more popular with the Malays than Mahathir, well educated and from a refined background. Why not pass the baton to Ku Li if Mahathir did not want to be PM?

The fact is Mahathir has allowed himself to become a 'cartoon', just like Ibrahim Ali and Hasan Ali. Malaysians, even those from UMNO-BN, know it is notr about Anwar. It is now about ABU - anything but UMNO. Again, this is the handiwork of Mahathir and Najib themselves, due to their own lousy leadership that has chased away so much support for their party that it is now on the point of implosion.

Najib giving up on UMNO too

So instead of just criticizing and demanding for his Mukhriz to be made the PM soon, Mahathir should realize that perhaps Najib is also thinking of ditching UMNO.

That's right, Najib is dumping UMNO - although not actually severing ties by either defecting or forming a new party. But for sure, Najib has been relegating UMNO to the back-burner, just as he has done to MCA, MIC and Gerakan - minimum maintenance while he concentrates on himself and making himself indispensable to the people.

Mahthir needs to calculate the odds of UMNO retaining its already weakened Malay support without Najib or the Badawi faction. If he goes on being such a sour and evil sop, nobody will play with him. He will end up the villain, the scapegoat for all that has gone wrong in UMNO and BN. In fact, he is already in that situation.

So dear Dr M, don't keep clawing. It is better to give it break and accept that there are people smarter than himself, not just political adversaries from within UMNO, but also from amongst the ordinary Malaysians.

The only thing that is saving Mahathir now are his riches. This buys him the protection and 'face' that currently sustains his political influence. No doubt, Mahathir's wealth can last several lifetimes, but once without political power - such as in a BN loss at the polls -  the billions are of no use.

Money, as they say, can't buy everything! Perhaps, mutual respect for fellow human beings is the more mature solution for long-lasting political popularity rather than a sick combo of cash and oppression.

Malaysia Chronicle