Yoursay: In the wake of Tg Piai, Dr M’s dignity in question

YOURSAY | ‘Do you need another by-election to see how recalcitrant you have become?’

Bersatu leader: We will react if Harapan partners force Dr M to resign

Cynic: Old or not, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad should learn to take responsibility.

Instead of shouldering blame for the knockout in Tanjung Piai, he is reshuffling the cabinet. Indeed, his much-touted dignity is in question here.

The rakyat is indebted to him for ousting Najib Abdul Razak, but his role should have ended here.

Remember Sir Winston Churchill? He was much needed during World War Two, but his services were no longer required in peacetime. That should be so with Mahathir.

Instead of trying to protect him, Malacca Bersatu deputy chief Mohd Rafiq Naizamohideen should be reasoning with his party boss and telling him to resign with his dignity intact.

Quigonbond: Bersatu says they will react - how? Pull out of the ruling coalition because they have exclusive right to PMship? How about the accord reached before GE14? How come the total silence on that promise?

It’s not a promise made to PKR Anwar Ibrahim. It’s a promise made to the electorate. If you continue to support Mahathir’s dilly-dallying, you are just as dishonest towards the electorate.

Do you need another by-election to see how recalcitrant you have become?

Apanakdikato: "This is like casting someone out after you have used them," said Rafiq. But this cannot be further from the truth.

Mahathir betrayed the trust of the rakyat who voted for Pakatan Harapan in GE14 by diverting his focus away from the promises of reforms made in the coalition’s manifesto to his personal agenda involving race and religious supremacy, protecting a rogue foreign preacher who made zero contribution to the nation at the expense of national harmony, protecting underperforming ministers from Bersatu, castrating non-Malay parties by persecuting its leaders, trying to portray himself as a champion of the Muslim world by condemning other sovereign countries, and many other shenanigans unbefitting of a PM.

It is Mahathir who has used the rakyat instead of serving them. If Mahathir thinks that he still has the support of the rakyat, does he dare to dissolve parliament today?

Otherwise, Mahathir is just a leech trying to illegitimately cling on to his position as PM. This is a shameless act.

Anonymous_1543475877: I agree with Rafiq. There should be respect for Mahathir, remembering the hard work he did to win this election.

He has already said he will step down by the middle of next year. And Anwar has accepted that. So, let us be patient and give Mahathir space.

There should be no more calls for Mahathir to step down. Mahathir, there are people who still respect your integrity.

Gerard Lourdesamy: Sorry, but Mahathir is talking about a cabinet reshuffle after November 2020. Which means he wants to stay on until 2021 at least (and not the middle of next year).

What can Anwar do one or two years before GE15 other than watch Harapan lose the elections?

Anonymous_b3cdcd05: Rafiq is talking nonsense to score brownie points with his boss.

Recalcitrant Mahathir is directly responsible for most of the problems under his watch in the last 18 months and the Tanjung Piai rout was a deliberate message directed at his party to hand over the reins to Anwar.

Harapan's reformist agenda commenced in 1998 and we grew in strength through GE12 and GE13 and captured Putrajaya in GE14 through the efforts of our persistence under Anwar's leadership.

Mahathir leapfrogged into Harapan. The question of gratitude must be the other way around. But true to his arrogance, he failed to appreciate the years of sacrifices of the Harapan struggle that gave him the premiership.

Once in office, he showed his true colours. His disgusting autocratic ways proved to be a disaster. He created unnecessary controversies that had no relevance to the needs of the people or the country. He failed to find solution to the people's rising economic hardship.

In fact, his racial politics and manipulative governance weakened the coalition. He failed to strengthen and stabilise the economy and resolve the people’s problems.

The Tanjung Piai thrashing - a referendum for Bersatu and its top dog - was a desperate cry for help by frustrated Harapan supporters that could not stomach the 94-year-old's delusion and deception any further.

OverseaseducatedMalaysian: Mahathir has hijacked the entire Harapan with his Bersatu party.

If he has had kept his promise and vacated his post earlier, maybe he could have been remembered as a hero. Now?

Perhaps he is stalling for time to make his son PM. If he is wise, he and his son should just go back to Umno. There is no way Bersatu is going to outdo Umno in winning the rural Malay votes; they are just bringing Harapan down instead.

Frank: Rafiq, whatever you and friends are going to do or not going to do, please remember this one thing: Malaysia and its future are much, much bigger than our beloved Mahathir, Bersatu or whatever who you and your friends care so much for.

For us, the New Malaysians, we shall continue to press ahead for the New Malaysia to emerge because either that or Malaysia is a country with no future in just a few years from now.

Why no future? From here to that future, there will just be cronyism, nepotism and corruption to be graduated to kleptocracy and Malaysia going back to its ‘The Sale for the Century 2.0’ episode.

Today is Malaysia's one and only chance for a future different from all that. Surely, all this is not hard to understand?

Anak JB: Bersatu, can you please talk a bit less loud and go back and count your seats.

This is why it is called democracy and the one who commands the most seats will have the reign of power and can talk the loudest. - Mkini