MALAYSIA
Malaysiakini-May 3
Dr Mahathir Mohamad has taken the fight to his enemy’s front steps, literally, by conducting a walkabout just in front of Pekan Umno’s office today.
The Pakatan Harapan chairperson had arrived to campaign in Pekan, the parliamentary seat of incumbent Najib Abdul Razak who is seeking reelection there for a tenth consecutive term in next week’s polls.
Najib, who is the caretaker prime minister and Umno president, has held the Pekan seat for over the last four decades, since 1976 when he took over from the late Abdul Razak Hussein who was Malaysia’s second prime minister and his father.
In pictures uploaded on Facebook, the 92-year-old Mahathir could be seen grinning widely as he posed for photos beneath the awning of a coffee shop situated just across the road from the Umno’s office.
Later, during a press conference with former finance minister Daim Zainuddin, Mahathir said that the Umno in existence today was not the same as the Umno of yesteryear.
In a video uploaded to his Facebook fan page, Mahathir said “Umno (now) is not Umno-lah” and was a far cry from the party established by the country’s former leaders.
“The Umno now is not the Umno established by (former prime ministers) Datuk Onn (Jaafar), the one established by Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak (Abdul Razak), Tun Hussein (Onn)… The Umno now is not Umno (of old),” he said.
The statement echoed that of an open letter he had penned to Umno members dated April 17, which he had uploaded to his Facebook page yesterday.
In the letter, Mahathir appealed to members of the party he himself had helmed for many years until 2003, to rethink their support for Najib.
He alleged that the party has lost its noble roots and was now there merely to legitimize Najib’s “crimes.”
