Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has drawn a comparison between the forthcoming general election and the 2018 polls – where the latter was held on a Wednesday.
He claimed that both polls were meant to discourage high voter turnout in order to ensure BN’s victory.
"Umno's move in calling for the general election to be held amid the monsoon and flood season is aimed at making sure the voter turnout rate is low," Mahathir said in a social media post.
"This strategy is no different from what Umno/BN did in the 2018 general election, where the polling day was set on Wednesday (May 9).
"Unfortunately, their strategy backfired in 2018 when Malaysians rose together and ensured a high voter turnout. That had ended the kleptocracy.
"This time around, with the polls being held during the monsoon season, they are again hoping for a low voter turnout and thus paving way for the kleptocrats to return to power.
"I am sure Malaysians do not want kleptocrats to rule again. The rakyat will vote en masse to block their return," the incumbent Langkawi MP added.
The 2018 general election saw a voter turnout rate of 82.32 percent, despite polling being held on a weekday.
Caretaker prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and his party Umno drew flak from many quarters for dissolving the Parliament on Oct 10, when the country was bracing for monsoon season and possible floods.
However, Mahathir failed to mention that when he was prime minister in 1999, the general election was held on Nov 29. Like Ismail Sabri, he dissolved Parliament soon after the national budget was tabled.
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