We all have a past – Dr M defends Waythamoorthy

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has defended former Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy over calls for the latter's resignation.

"We all have a past. Like me, I came from Umno. It can't be that just because I was from Umno, now I can't be with Pakatan Harapan," he told reporters in Serdang this evening.

Various quarters had called for Waythamoorthy, who is a minister in the Prime Minister's Department, to resign over his remarks more than a decade ago that the government discriminated Indian Malaysians.

Mahathir said Wathamoorthy's stand was borne out of extreme disappointment and an attempt to draw international attention to the plight of Indian Malaysians.

"But that was then. Now, he is in the government. And he no longer holds on to what he said at the time," he added.

Mahathir pointed out that even his fiercest critics who used to describe him as "Mahazalim" have now accepted his leadership.

"There will be a change with the passing of time," he said.

Waythamoorthy himself had explained that the video clip used to accuse him of sullying Malaysia's image was from 10 years ago when the situation was different.

Shortly after the Hindraf rally in November 2007, Waythamoorthy had, in an interview with a Dutch TV channel, criticised the alleged discrimination against ethnic minorities, particularly Indian Malaysians. 

Commenting on an online petition calling for Waythamoorthy's resignation which has amassed over 100,000 supporters, Mahathir said any person has a right to initiate a petition, and Waythamoorthy similarly has a right to respond.

"If Waythamoorthy wants to resign, he can. But he does not want to.

"It's (just) a petition," the prime minister said.

Aside from his controversial remarks, Waythamoorthy also triggered backlash for his stance on ratifying the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd).

At the same time, there was also a counter-petitionlaunched by netizens who supported Waythamoorthy's push for ratification of the United Nations human rights instrument.  - Mkini