Muhyiddin parries blame he's responsible for Najib's resurgence

 

Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairperson Muhyiddin Yassin may have positioned himself as a man committed to stopping the return of "corrupt" BN leaders but his ex-mentor Dr Mahathir Mohamad has made an opposite argument - Muhyiddin is the very person responsible for their resurgence.

Parrying Mahathir's accusation, Muhyiddin (above, right) said his ouster as the prime minister last year was proof of his commitment as he refused to cooperate with the "court cluster".

Muhyiddin had said leaders like Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and BN advisory board chairperson Najib Abdul Razak (above, middle) wanted their graft cases dropped, something he was unwilling to do.

"How is it being said that I was the one who threw a spanner in the works in the effort to hold Najib Abdul Razak to account for what they have done?

"I fought them, that's why I was ousted. I fought them and refused to compromise with their corruption and abuse of power," he told journalists after campaigning for PN candidates in Pagoh for the Johor polls.

Najib and Zahid were among a group of Umno MPs who ousted Muhyiddin as the prime minister last year.

However, Mahathir (above, left), in an open letter earlier today, walked Muhyiddin down memory lane, stating that the current situation wouldn't happen if he hadn't first brought down the Pakatan Harapan federal government.

"We, including Johor voters, managed to stop Najib from robbing the people when he, Umno, and BN were rejected in the last general election,” Mahathir said.

"The (electoral) success reflected how many Johoreans could not accept Umno supporting a robber.

"Unfortunately, the success was stunted after Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin, in wanting to become prime minister, betrayed the people's mandate and Harapan partners for his ambitions.

"During the Sheraton Move, I asked if he was willing to set aside his principles to cooperate with Umno's kleptocrats and court cluster. Muhyiddin said principles were not important, politics is," Mahathir added.

The Langkawi MP said that Johor's rejection of kleptocrats was particularly meaningful because there were also "non-political forces" who tried to defend Najib and Umno.

Mahathir did not name the "non-political forces" although Johor crown prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim had, in the run-up to the 2018 general election, advised Johoreans not to "rock the boat".

Costly mistake

Mahathir, who was sacked from Bersatu, went on to form Pejuang, which is contesting 42 seats in the Johor polls.

He said he had to speak up even though he is embarrassed to mention Najib's name because the Pekan MP continued to whitewash his crimes.

Najib has been convicted of money laundering, abuse of power, and criminal breach of trust. He is appealing his 12-year jail sentence and RM210 million fine for misappropriation funds of a former 1MDB subsidiary.

Mahathir, who was the Bersatu chairperson, resigned as the prime minister in 2020 after Muhyiddin and his party rebelled against him as they wanted to quit the Harapan government to form a new government with the opposition at the time, which included Umno.

Mahathir later admitted resigning as the prime minister was a mistake as he lost control of the political bargaining process, allowing Muhyiddin to emerge as the new prime minister.

Mahathir's Harapan partners also blamed the Langkawi MP as he wasted valuable time by trying to form a new government comprising of non-politicians, something Harapan MPs could not accept as they wanted to restore their original coalition government.

The blame game deepened the rift between Harapan and Mahathir, prompting Mahathir to separate from the coalition and form the Pejuang party.

Muhyiddin's own tenure as PM only lasted around 18 months as Umno grew stronger and eventually strong-armed him out of the government.

"I had said that cooperating with Umno's kleptocrats and court cluster is akin to riding a tiger and it is a matter of time before one is eaten.

"What I predicted came true. Muhyiddin was betrayed by Umno and lost his position as the prime minister," Mahathir said.

Muhyiddin was replaced with Umno vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the new prime minister.

Najib has made very public appearances during the campaigning period of the Johor polls.

Campaigning for the Johor polls kicked off on Feb 26. Johoreans will go to the polls on March 12. - Mkini