KUALA LUMPUR – Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s apparent fall from political grace is evidence that no good can come from turning one’s back on Umno, said party president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
According to Zahid, Dr Mahathir and his party Pejuang’s abysmal performance during the recent general election (GE15) is an example of what happens when politicians who think too highly of themselves discard Umno after the party built them up.
“(Dr Mahathir) was confident that his name was enough for him to succeed, but in the end, (Pejuang) drowned in the ocean and lost their name.
“This is why you should not leave Umno and feel that the party is not important,” he said during his winding up speech at the party’s general assembly here today.
GE15 saw Dr Mahathir lose his deposit in a defeat to four other candidates for the Langkawi federal constituency. He secured only 4,566 votes out of 48,123 registered voters.
Pejuang did not win any seats in the 125 seats it contested.
Last month, Dr Mahathir resigned as party chairman, although he remains an ordinary member and is chairman of Gerakan Tanah Air, a loose coalition of Malay-based groups including Pejuang.
Recalling Dr Mahathir’s extensive background with Umno, Zahid, who is also deputy prime minister, said that the nonagenarian should attribute his rise to political prominence to the Barisan Nasional (BN) linchpin, which he helmed for over two decades.
“After years of being Umno president, he (Mahathir) left Umno and was fortunate enough to become prime minister again for 22 months.
“Even then, he required the support of former Umno members who defected,” he said, ostensibly referring to a number of MPs from the BN linchpin who had jumped ship to Bersatu during the 2018 general election (GE14).
Describing Umno as a “sacred party”, Zahid said that while history records depict influential figures repeatedly attempting to bring the party down, it has stood strong against all tribulations.
“Many prominent figures have tried to bring about Umno’s downfall, but wait and see. “Remember, money is not everything but everything needs money,” he said, without naming any particular figureheads.
In 2016, Dr Mahathir quit Umno and formed Bersatu before going on to lead Pakatan Harapan to victory in GE14, making history as the first time the nation was ruled by a non-BN government. – The Vibes, January 14, 2023
