Communications and Multimedia Minister Salleh Said Keruak cited a case in point three years ago, when former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam said that Dr Mahathir was in Malaysia when the Memali incident happened.
“Was Musa mistaken? Why has Mahathir not replied to this?
“So you see, Mahathir avoids talking about anything that hurts him,” Salleh told FMT.
In the years following the Kampung Memali incident in which 14 villagers and four policemen were killed on Nov 19, 1985, the popular belief had been that Mahathir had just left the country for an official trip to China and appointed Musa acting prime minister.
However, Musa had written in his autobiography, which was released in April 2014, that Mahathir was in the country at the time of the Memali incident. This was later confirmed by Mahathir.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was also reported as saying earlier this month that Mahathir had tried to shift responsibility for the Memali incident to Musa, despite still being in the country.
Salleh brought up the Memali issue in response to the Pakatan Harapan chairman’s accusation that Prime Minister Najib Razak had paid people to eat with him at an event in Permatang Pauh on Thursday.
Mahathir told the 3,000-strong crowd at the Jelajah Semarak 3M-Mahathir-Muhyiddin-Mukhriz ceramah, organised by PPBM in Kepala Batas Friday night, that some form of payment may have been given as well to the 20,000 participants as an incentive to show up.
Mahathir, who is also PPBM chairman, was referring to the attempt by Permatang Pauh Umno to enter the Malaysia Book of Records as having the “highest number of people gathered to eat a meal while sitting cross-legged on the ground”.
The event was held at the Politeknik Seberang Perai, in mainland Penang, with the stop being one of many for Najib during his tour of the country’s northern states. He also visited Langkawi, Kedah.
Salleh further stated that during the Sanggang (Pahang) by-election in the year 2000, the crowd at a PAS ceramah was so huge that it forced Mahathir to comment about it.
Salleh said Mahathir had then said crowds do not matter, that “maybe PAS can get 50,000 people for its ceramah and Umno cannot get even a few hundred. But it is votes that matter”.
“Umno with no crowd won that by-election and PAS lost.
“Mahathir can say the opposite to what he said earlier just because it suits his agenda. So, why the need to respond to what he says?” said Salleh, who is also Umno treasurer.
Kampung Memali, where people still wait for Mahathir’s apology
Dr M tells Hadi: Policemen who died in Memali had families too