What Game Is Mahathir Playing?

DAP was so vocal regarding the Umno-PAS Penyatuan Ummah move but has said nothing about this Sunday’s Kongres Maruah Melayu. Why? This sounds quite odd. Maybe DAP knows what the real purpose of the Kongres Maruah Melayu is and that is why they are keeping quiet.

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Not just Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, but everyone is playing games.

It was Muhyiddin Yassin who sold out Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah in 2008 so that when Najib Tun Razak takes over as Prime Minister he would become the Deputy Prime Minister. Poor Ku Li was led down the garden path and then left high and dry.

Then, six years later, Muhyiddin struck again. And this time he sold out Najib. It was Muhyiddin who brought the 1MDB issue to Mahathir’s attention. Muhyiddin told Mahathir that at least RM42 billion and probably even more than RM50 billion had lesap or disappeared into thin air. That was the reason Mahathir announced that Najib had stolen RM42 billion and maybe even more than RM50 billion of 1MDB’s money.

What Mahathir did not know, because Muhyiddin did not tell him, is that the billions had actually been used to buy assets and to invest in companies and businesses. Mahathir thought Najib had syphoned out cash of about RM42 billion or more with nothing in return.

What Mahathir does not seem to realise is Muhyiddin also wants to become Prime Minister

Mahathir trusted Muhyiddin and did not check properly what Muhyiddin told him before opening his mouth. And that is the reason Mahathir is going all out to make sure that Najib is sent to jail. If not, then Mahathir will look very stupid for accusing Najib of stealing RM42 billion or more than RM50 billion and yet Najib is still walking free.

Everyone knows that the real reason Mahathir went for Najib’s throat is because of Mukhriz. The 1MDB issue is just the excuse to attack Najib. Mahathir was angry with Najib for not helping Mukhriz in his contest against Khairy Jamaluddin, not just once but twice.

Mahathir thought Najib would help Mukhriz, as payback for making him Prime Minister. But Najib stayed neutral and Mukhriz lost both times. That was what the whole issue was about, nothing to do with 1MDB.

Anyway, Najib proved harder to kill than Mahathir had thought. Mahathir used Muhyiddin, Shafie Apdal, the Bank Negara Governor, the Special Branch, the IGP, the MACC, the Attorney-General, and so on in the effort to kill Najib, but still he would not fall. Finally, Mahathir had no choice but to use Pakatan Harapan to bring down Umno so that Najib could be killed.

Mahathir had to work with Pakatan Harapan to kill Umno just so that he could oust Najib

Pakatan Harapan, especially DAP, was very happy that Mahathir was prepared to work with them to bring down Umno. Only Umno can destroy Umno so this suited DAP’s plan beautifully. Hence DAP welcomed Mahathir with open arms.

So, a deal was stuck. Mahathir would form a new Malay party to steal the Malay votes from Umno (an idea suggested by Lim Kit Siang). Mahathir would become Prime Minister for two years after which he would hand over to Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir would release Anwar from jail via a pardon. DAP would be given the post of Finance Minister plus a few other very important/crucial cabinet posts. DAP would decide the post of Attorney-General — and, in this case, it would be Chin Peng’s lawyer, Tommy Thomas.

But then, as soon as Mahathir took over as Prime Minister, he did what he liked, not what was agreed (or what Pakatan Harapan thought he would agree to do). And Pakatan Harapan, especially DAP, is too ashamed to talk about it. So they just keep quiet and say nothing, thinking that in the next few months Mahathir will be gone anyway, after which the problem will be solved.

The only way for Anwar to become Prime Minister would be to oust Mahathir through a vote of no confidence

But Mahathir does not intend to go either now or in the next few months. In fact, Mahathir denies he agreed to go after two years. “We’ve never discussed it. We have to study the situation, if the work is half done or not done, then it will be difficult,” Mahathir said today.

But how does the Kongres Maruah Melayu this Sunday fit into all this? DAP accuses the recent Umno-PAS Penyatuan Ummah gathering as a racist move. And then Mahathir goes and organises the Kongres Maruah Melayu or Malay Dignity Congress.

Mahathir also invited Umno and PAS to attend the Congress and PAS has already confirmed they are attending. If both Umno and PAS attend then this will make it yet another Umno-PAS Penyatuan Ummah meeting, but this time involving a third Malay party, PPBM or Bersatu.

Mahathir has to break up the Umno-PAS Penyatuan Ummah or else PPBM must join them as the third coalition member

Does Mahathir know DAP and the Anwar faction in PKR are going to oust him on or before May 2020 and is this Mahathir’s first step to doing a deal with Umno and PAS? If Mahathir has the support of Umno, PAS, Sabah and Sarawak, then PPBM can break away from Pakatan Harapan and Mahathir can form a new coalition minus DAP and the Anwar faction in PKR.

On the other hand, there are those who say the Kongres Maruah Melayu is aimed at splitting Umno and PAS. If PAS attends but Umno does not that may have repercussions on the Umno-PAS cooperation.

The Tanjung Piai by-election is around the corner and with 56% Malay voters and 42%, Chinese voters an Umno-PAS cooperation will be bad for Pakatan Harapan. They need Umno and PAS to clash and this is what the Kongres Maruah Melayu may achieve.

DAP was so vocal regarding the Umno-PAS Penyatuan Ummah move but has said nothing about this Sunday’s Kongres Maruah Melayu. Why? This sounds quite odd. Maybe DAP knows what the real purpose of the Kongres Maruah Melayu is and that is why they are keeping quiet.