In court filing, Zahid says Dr M asked him to dissolve Umno

 

Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (left), in his response to Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s defence statement, said the meetings were not to discuss criminal cases against him. (Twitter pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has claimed that his five meetings with Dr Mahathir Mohamad from 2018 to 2020 were not to discuss criminal cases against him but to resolve the political issues in the country at that time.

According to an affidavit filed by Zahid in his defamation suit against Mahathir, he said that Mahathir had urged him at several of the meetings to dissolve Umno and suggested that its members (especially MPs and assemblymen) join Mahathir in Bersatu.

The five meetings were held between June 2018 and February 2020 at several locations, including the Perdana Leadership Foundation in Putrajaya.

Zahid’s claims were made in response to Mahathir’s statement of defence to the defamation suit.

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He said the meetings with Mahathir were also attended by other Umno Supreme Council members at that time, including (deputy president) Mohamad Hasan, Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Mahdzir Khalid.

Zahid alleged that the meetings were held after Umno grassroots members agitated for change in the party’s direction and also discussed possible cooperation, both in the short term and long term, between Umno and Bersatu.

“At the meetings, however, the defendant (Mahathir) urged me to dissolve Umno and join Bersatu. Therefore, the defendant’s claim that I was making an effort to discuss the criminal cases against me are untrue and baseless,” Zahid said in his response, filed on May 31.

Mahathir had alleged in his defence statement on May 17 that Zahid had voiced his concern at several meetings they had between 2018 and 2020 about the criminal cases against him.

Zahid has sued Mahathir for defamation, over several allegedly slanderous statements at a Pejuang event before the Johor state elections in February.

He said Mahathir had implied that Zahid was trying to use shortcuts to resolve or postpone his criminal cases and to use his position and influence to induce Mahathir to intervene in the criminal proceedings and the investigations against him.

He has also filed for an interim injunction for Mahathir to withdraw his statements and stop them from being published, distributed or circulated.

Zahid’s counsel, Shahrul Fazli Kamarulzaman, said the application for the motion would be heard on July 5.

Zahid is currently facing trial in the High Court on 12 charges of criminal breach of trust, eight counts of bribery and 27 counts of money laundering. - FMT