SHAH ALAM: Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad today admitted that the Malay element in Pakatan Harapan government is not as strong as Barisan Nasional’s despite being led by Malay leaders.
He said this was due to the Malay community being divided into multiple political parties which now led to the country’s majority race being left behind both economically and politically.
“I’d like to say that although the current government is being led by the Malays, it’s Malay element is not as strong as the previous government.
“Previously, we could rely on the government (BN) because it was a strong Malay government but that’s not the case anymore,” he said in his speech during Kongres Maruah Melayu (Malay Dignity Congress) held at Stadium Malawati here today.
Due to the division, Dr Mahathir said some of the Malays were “forced to be dependent on others” to achieve victory.
He, however, did not elaborate further on who or which political party he was referring to.
For the record, Dr Mahathir, after resigning from Umno in 2015, joined with DAP to form Pakatan Harapan along with PKR and Parti Amanah Negara which led to the historic victory on May 9, 2018.
“It is us who broke away from each other. We are now in small groups and are fighting with each other and this is why we have to rely on others for victory.
“Like it or not, now we have to consider the feelings of others or else, we will lose in the election and that’s a fact.
“When we rely on others, one way or another, we will be indebted to them and we will be afraid to lose their support because it will mean losing our positions.
“Because of this, we have betrayed the powers given to us to the point that our dignity is being insulted and we are looked down upon in our own country,” he said.
Also present today were Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, Umno secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa, PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, Parti Amanah Negara president Mohamad Sabu and former ministers Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and Khairy Jamaluddin.
Kongres Maruah Melayu today saw participation of more than 10,000 people.