WILL NAJIB DARE TO ARREST DR M: Will police reports be lodged & against whom - Dr M OR Najib?

Over the past months, Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been firing rubber pellets at Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak fueling speculation that a move is being orchestrated to oust the latter.

But this morning, on the eve of Najib's sixth year in office, Mahathir loaded his gun with real bullets.

For the first time, he touched on the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, which has haunted Najib for almost a decade and remains a potent weapon in the opposition's arsenal.

Mahathir also harped on the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) issue and predicted that BN would be defeated in the next polls since people of all races have lost faith in Najib.

Sharing his view on this, former veteran newsman A Kadir Jasin asked if police reports would be lodged against Mahathir.

"Will there be reports similar to those filed against Umno man Khairuddin Abu Hassan for questioning 1MDB?" he told Malaysiakini.

Khairuddin, who was said to be a Mahathir strongman, filed reports with the police and Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) demanding an investigation into the alleged financial wrongdoings in the firm.

Questioned on Mahathir's decision to unleash this devastating blow, Kadir, who is also close to the former premier, outlined several reasons, which included Mahathir being abroad and hence not having the time to update his blog.

He also speculated perhaps Mahathir was waiting for Najib's daughter’s wedding to end as he did not wish to embarrass the prime minister during the period.

"It could also be related to (Opposition Leader) Anwar Ibrahim now being in prison and no longer a political factor," he added.

Anwar posed a threat to Umno and BN, hence Mahathir could have held back his bullets until the opposition leader is put behind bars.

Another Umno leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, admitted that the former premier's remarks have ignited an explosion.

He indicated that while numerous Umno leaders at the federal and grassroots level supported Najib, they would be hesitant to speak out against Mahathir.

This, he added, was due to respect for the veteran leader, who reigned as Umno president and prime minister for more than two decades.

The question now is whether Mahathir, who is almost 90, would be able to add another political scalp to his collection and if his open declaration of war against Najib would gain traction. - M'kini