Dr M denies belittling Malays, says they’re wiser about Umno now

 

Dr Mahathir Mohamad says he left Umno in 2016 because the party had strayed from its original struggle for the Malays.

PETALING JAYA: Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has denied belittling Malay voters by alleging that they will support Umno in the general election (GE15) because of offers of money.

Instead, Mahathir said he believed that these voters were wiser about Umno and would not vote for the Barisan Nasional lynchpin.

“(Umno president) Ahmad Zahid Hamidi stated that I had said Umno will win (in GE15), but he left out what I said after that,” the Pejuang chairman said in a video posted on Twitter. “I said Umno will win because they will ‘bribe’ voters with money.

“So, if this time, voters reject Umno’s money, Umno won’t win. I believe voters are now more aware about the harm of (voting for) Umno and will not vote for them.

“Therefore, my statement is that Umno will lose.”

Last week, Nikkei quoted Mahathir as saying Umno had a good chance of winning GE15 because it had “a lot of money”. He also told the Associated Press that most Malay voters had returned to supporting Umno because of money and other incentives.

Mahathir also reportedly predicted internal strife ahead for Umno, believing that it did not want Ismail Sabri Yaakob to remain at the helm of the country.

In response, Zahid said Mahathir was belittling Malay voters and told the former prime minister not to disparage their honesty and wisdom.

Mahathir had also said the majority of the Malays were returning to Umno as they were disappointed with the way Pakatan Harapan (PH) had governed the country in its 22 months in power.

In his video today, the former Umno president maintained that his struggle was not for any party but for the Malay people and their future.

He reiterated that he had quit Umno in 2016 because the party he had led for more than 20 years had strayed from its original struggle for the Malays.

Mahathir, who led Bersatu for just under four years, now leads Pejuang and Gerakan Tanah Air, a loose coalition of Malay-based parties, NGOs, academics, and professionals.

He did not say whether he will contest in the upcoming general election. - FMT