Is DPM happy to be seen as siding with Dr M?

It seems so, says Shahbudin Husin, and Zam appears to agree.

PETALING JAYA: It is significant that Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has not objected to commentaries promoting the perception that he is on Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s side in the former premier’s dispute with Prime Minister Najib Razak, according to analyst Shahbudin Husin.

Indeed, Shahbudin observes, Muhyiddin appears keen to encourage the perception, which was strengthened last Sunday, when the DPM, speaking at a forum in Mahathir’s presence, praised the latter’s courage and tenacity in “fighting for truth”.

He reports that Muhyiddin again spoke of the value of truth last night, when he addressed a group of writers.

Last Sunday’s forum was on the subject of war, and a few voices have cautioned against misinterpreting Muhyiddin’s remark, saying he might have been praising Mahathir’s courage against Western powers, not his determination to get at the truth behind the alleged wrongdoings associated with Najib.

Shahbudin says Muhyiddin, if he had wanted to, could have issued a brief clarification to settle the controversy. “He can say, for instance, that he has been interpreted out of context.”

The DPM’s silence may indicate that he is happy to be seen as siding with Mahathir, Shahbudin says.

At last night’s function, Muhyiddin urged writers to adhere to the truth in producing their works and he stressed the value of truthfulness several times in his speech, Shahbudin reports.

“Again, it’s not difficult to see a connection between the speech and the current political crisis, in which Mahathir is seeking the truth behind several issues, including the 1MDB affair and the Altantuya murder.”

Former information minister Zainuddin Maidin deals with the same subject in his blog entry today. He says the decision of the mainstream press to ignore Muhyiddin’s speech on Sunday lends credence to the perception he has chosen to be on Mahathir’s side.

Zainuddin notes that Muhyiddin, directly addressing Mahathir, said, “You are not alone, Sir.”

“When newspapers like Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian and the New Straits Times decide not to publish the news, it is indicative of their being in agreement that those five words were words of support for Mahathir,” he says. “Or perhaps that they were told that this was the view of the Prime Minister’s Department.”

Zainuddin ends his brief article with a rhetorical question: “Who says Muhyiddin is not a smooth and crafty political operator?”