Mahathir turns his back on Umno

Former prime minister says he will not rejoin Umno even if Najib is ousted

FORMER prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad vows not to rejoin Umno even if Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is ousted. The PPBM chairman says Umno is no longer the champion of religion, race and country. Dr Mahathir had last year declared that he was still an Umno man at heart.

"I WILL never return to Umno”.

That was the state “I ment made yesterday by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, in which he declared that he would not rejoin Umno “even if Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is ousted”.

This is a stark contrast from a statement he made in February last year, when the former prime minister said that at heart, he was still an Umno man.

In a video posted on the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) Facebook page yesterday, Dr Mahathir claimed that Umno was now “rotten” and that the party had strayed from its purpose.

“The party now places more importance on itself, on money and such. It is no longer the champion of religion, race and country.

“Due to all of this, the party is no longer the Umno of old. It has been shaped by Najib and it now has completely different aims from before.

“Because of this, I will never return to Umno,” said Dr Mahathir, who is also PPBM chairman.

Dr Mahathir quit Umno on Feb 29 last year, saying that he was “too embarrassed” to be associated with a party that was seen to be supporting corruption.

It marked the second time Dr Mahathir had left Umno.

He first quit the party in May 2008 after criticising his successor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s style of administration.

He was recently made Pakatan Harapan chairman, working alongside his former enemy, jailed opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is the pact’s de facto leader.

Anwar was deputy prime minister and heir apparent to Dr Mahathir in the 1990s, until he was unceremoniously kicked out of the government and Umno following allegations of corruption and sexual misconduct.

Meanwhile, Cheras Umno division chief Datuk Seri Syed Ali Alhabshee, when contacted, said that Dr Mahathir should remember that it was Umno which had supported him throughout his political career.

“As a party member, I respected Dr Mahathir. But, I don’t understand what he’s doing now. He should remember he became the prime minister because of Umno,” he said.

“Was it not Umno which supported him until he became a prime minister?

“During Pak Lah’s (Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) time, he said he would never return to Umno, but then he did anyway.”