Government spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil today called on the people to ignore former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his antics, branding the nonagenarian as an “attention seeker”.
This comes in response to Mahathir’s claim yesterday that there is an increasing number of Malays committing suicide and murdering their parents due to rising costs of living.
Fahmi (above) said he was puzzled about where the former premier got the data from, and in jest suggested that Mahathir could have been using some sort of magic.
“Perhaps he uses some other type of ‘ilmu’ (knowledge). It is hard for me to say factually what that might be, but I believe he is an attention seeker.
“At this juncture, I don’t think we should ‘layan’ (entertain) so much anymore.
“We respect him, so we will give him some space in his twilight years. Maybe he is under stress,” Fahmi told a press conference.
Yesterday, Mahathir, a two-time prime minister, joined a rally in front of Istana Negara seeking the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah’s intervention concerning a “failed” government.
During this event, he claimed that the high cost of living and economic situation were driving Malays to commit suicide and murder.
“There are those who killed their mothers, who killed their parents because they lost their source (of income) and are very pressured,” he had said.
He did not furnish evidence or statistics to back up the claim, but it is believed that Mahathir and the organisers of the rally had taken the information from a Bernama story about suicide cases in Kelantan.
The article, which the protesters cited in their memorandum to the palace, stated that 17 cases of people jumping from bridges had been recorded in Kelantan since 2021.
‘Serve the rakyat’
Fahmi also told the press conference that Sultan Abdullah, whose tenure as the king is coming to an end, had sent the cabinet a message through Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Among others, he said, the king cited a quote from Islamic scholar Imam Al-Ghazali to remind the country’s leaders that they must work for the rakyat and not abuse their position to amass wealth.
“In his letter, the king relayed his reminder through a quote by Imam Al-Ghazali... Let me read it out to you.
“Damage to the people can be caused by the destruction of the rulers. Damage to the rulers can be caused by the destruction of the ulama, and the damage to the ulama can be caused by their love for the world and their position.
“This was His Majesty’s decree to the cabinet members, reminding us to serve the rakyat instead of going after power and wealth,” Fahmi added.
On another matter, Fahmi welcomed the announcement by opposition MP Zulkafperi Hanapi to shift his support to Anwar.
He said it was proof that the government was on the right track.
"We welcome his decision. This is evidence that the government has the trust of many, unlike the claims made by certain leaders and groups that this government is collapsing.
"Perhaps there is some truth in what Bukit Gantang MP said the other day, that seven or eight more (opposition MPs) will shift their support.
"Whatever it is, the government is in a solid position, which has allowed us to come up with five important policies last year," he said.
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