‘LABEL AN INSULT TO MALAYSIA’
Dr M’s ‘Darul Penyangak’ remark unpatriotic, says Salleh
z AINA NASA
KUALA LUMPUR news@nst.com.my
TUN Dr Mahathir Mohamad labelling Malaysia as “Darul Penyangak” is an insult to the country, said Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak.
In a blog posting yesterday, Salleh said even if Dr Mahathir was unhappy with the government, he should not have insulted his own nation.
“It is wrong for Dr Mahathir to label the country as such. As a former prime minister, the label is unpatriotic and exceeds political wisdom.
“The country is ours. In the good or bad, rise or fall of this country, we must defend it rather than insult it.”
Dr Mahathir had in his blog called Malaysia “Darul Penyangak”, or rogue state, over the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) issue and the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
According to Salleh, Dr Mahathir deliberately repeated the issues of 1MDB and GST in his writing and speeches to rally the people to go against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
The strategy, he said, was like hitting the head of a snake repeatedly so that the snake became weak and paralysed.
“This is bad revenge politics. Najib had explained the facts on 1MDB and the rationale of GST implementation.
“Dr Mahathir will not listen or accept any explanation because his goal is to bring down Najib in the name of political revenge rather than for the country.”