Universiti Malaya associate professor Awang Azman Awang Pawi told FMT that this was especially the case in light of the upcoming general election.

“This will affect people’s perception of the party or the individual, especially with the coming general election,” he said.

Mahathir had yesterday challenged Nazri to a public debate on state-owned 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), the Bumiputera Malaysia Finance (BMF) scandal and the RM2.6 billion deposited into Prime Minister Najib Razak’s bank account.

Nazri accepted the challenge last night, saying he would be ready for the debate as soon as he returned to Malaysia from a working visit to Berlin. He is scheduled to return on Monday.

Speaking today, Awang Azman said the debate would be “a great political epic”, reminiscent of the 2008 debate between then opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and Umno minister Shabery Cheek.

However, he warned that only talking about the issues would have little impact.

“Debates can enlighten the public on issues but might not solve the problem as long as there is no political will and concrete action,” he told FMT.

Awang Azman proposed that the debate take place in a transparent manner, broadcast live on television. He added that the content of the discussion should not be emotional or become a case of personal criticism.

“The debate should be about ideas and arguments.”

Ultimately, he expected the debate to be cancelled due to third-party intervention. He said there could be those who did not want a particular party’s image to be tarnished, or who worried that the debate might not be balanced.

Talk about the BMF scandal was revived when recently declassified US Central Intelligence Agency documents linked the Mahathir administration to about US$1 billion in losses in the 1980s.

Last year, meanwhile, Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi Ali cleared Najib of any wrongdoing pertaining to the RM2.6 billion deposit, saying he was satisfied that the money had been a personal donation from the Saudi royal family.

Nazri earlier challenged Mahathir, who is the founding chairman of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM), to contest against him in Padang Rengas in the coming general election.

Mahathir responded by throwing down the gauntlet to Nazri to contest against him for the Langkawi parliamentary seat. The former prime minister has since said he will not run for election.

Mahathir was appointed Langkawi PPBM division chief last month.