Dr M: Najib playing hard, not being democratic

PM's arch-critic accuses him of failing to follow the process for smooth transition of party leadership as in the past

PETALING JAYA: Dr Mahathir Mohamad, arch-critic of Najib Razak, has accused the prime minister of “playing hard” and failing to follow past practice and the democratic process for a smooth transition of party leadership.

Dr Mahathir said past Umno leaders and prime ministers had stepped down in the face of failures in leadership. “The transition was smooth,” he said in his latest blog article at chedet.cc under the headline Najib and Democracy.

He said the change of leadership was settled democratically via party elections, and members could air their views.

“But he (Najib) is not. He is playing hard. He is using his power as president and prime minister to prevent anyone trying to influence his position.

Dr Mahathir recalled that Umno founder Onn Jaafar resigned when the party rejected his proposal to open the party to non-Malay members. “Onn never tried to remain in power,” he said.

Similarly, Onn’s successor Tunku Abdul Rahman stepped down after a poor performance by the party in the 1969 elections, and realising he was no longer popular with Umno members.

Mahathir added that the two challengers to his own leadership, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Musa Hitam, did the same, although their challenge split Umno into his Team A and Razaleigh’s Team B.

His successor, Abdullah Badawi, also stepped down from the Umno presidency and as prime minister, Dr Mahathir recalled.

Mahathir complained that Najib had placed constraints on the Umno general assembly in December: the number of observers were limited; members were not allowed to talk about 1Malaysia Development Bhd and a report of RM2.6 billion being deposited in Najib’s personal account; the Deputy President had not been allowed to give the opening remarks; only Najib spoke at the opening and the closing.

“There was no serious debate throughout the conference,” he said.

Dr Mahathir supported a move to allow party members to debate Najib’s performances. He said Najib’s drastic actions such as suspending deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin, which he said was carried out without due process, left many Umno members and leaders in fear of voicing their views.

He accused Najib of concentrating government powers in his hands and ignoring the separation of powers between the legislature, the executive and the judiciary.

“Najib has grabbed all the powers. With this, executive, including police and judicial institutions are no longer free to carry out their responsibilities. He leads all their movements. They have to follow the instructions to reject any investigation against him,” he said.

The party machinery and government machinery had been paralyzed and no longer worked, Dr Mahathir said.

“That is why action had to be held outside the party,” he said, urging more members of Umno to voice their views and cooperate with the opposition to remove Najib and to save the country.

He said Najib would play up the issue of the DAP’s Lim Kit Siang siding with him in the Citizens’ Declaration in order to divide Umno members, and of playing on fears of the Chinese bringing down a Malay government.

Dr Mahathir has waged a year-long campaign to oust Najib from power through exposures of the financial affairs of 1Malaysia Development Bhd and the issue of the RM2.6 billion deposit in Najib’s personal bank account. The government has said the money came from the Saudi royal family and was a donation to help ensure a victory by the Barisan Nasional at the 2013 general election.