‘DR M MUST EXPLAIN U-TURN’
Does he stand by his statement that Anwar is an immoral leader and cannot lead the country? asks Najib
TUN Dr Mahathir Mohamad must explain the U-turn he made in supporting Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as he had previously said the latter had committed unnatural acts and was morally unfit to lead the country.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said Dr Mahathir must now clarify whether he still stood by the statement.
“There are many questions which have left people wondering. Firstly, does Dr Mahathir stand by his statement made in 1998 when he accused Anwar of committing unnatural acts?
“He even said Anwar was an immoral leader who could not lead the country. All these are major questions which must be answered.
“Is the accusation wrong to begin with or is he (Dr Mahathir) sacrificing his principles for the sake of politics?” Najib told reporters at the 2017 Umno Aidilfitri Open House at the Putra World Trade Centre yesterday.
It was previously mentioned that Dr Mahathir, who was then prime minister, had claimed that Anwar committed sodomy and that a sodomite was not fit to become the country’s leader.
Najib said as long as Dr Mahathir did not answer these questions, the people would say that it was all a dishonest political drama.
He said even though there were some people who were unhappy with Umno and the government, efforts had been made to take the country to a higher level.
Najib said this was contrary to what was happening in the opposition, which was full of uncertainty when it came to decision making and deciding on policy directions.
“There is no reason for the rakyat to take the risk of voting for the opposition when the Barisan Nasional government has a proven track record of over 60 years with long-term planning such as the TN50 initiative.”
“The people should continue to put their trust in a structure of national leadership which is clear and driven by well-defined goals for the betterment of the nation,” he said.
Najib added that overwhelming response from the public to the open house was an indication of the people’s strong support for Umno.
Present were the prime minister’s wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, Umno secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, Umno treasurer Datuk Dr Seri Salleh Said Keruak, Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin, Wanita Umno chief Tan Sri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil, Umno information chief Tan Sri Annuar Musa and other party leaders.