In a no-holds-barred interview with Utusan’s Mingguan Malaysia, Khairy said while points raised by the former prime minister was well received, it had been broached by others as well.
“And the easiest way to counter the points (raised by Najib) is by (bringing up) 1MDB,” he told the Malay daily, referring to the scandal-plagued state investment fund.
“He gets traction because he is the former prime minister and I have no problems if he wants to speak up, but for me, it would be better if he spoke less. It would be better for Umno.”
The former Umno Youth chief was asked to comment on the fact that Najib has been active in criticising the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration.
But Khairy, who last month tweeted that 1MDB led to the Barisan Nasional’s defeat in the May 9 polls, said if one were to read the comments, it was obvious that BN had been checkmated by the 1MDB scandal.
The Rembau MP, however, stressed that while he had no issues with Najib, the reality was that the investment arm is still linked to BN.
Najib is currently facing multiple charges in connection with the alleged transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars into his bank account from state investment fund 1MDB.
When asked if Umno should cut ties with Najib in order to distance itself from the scandal, Khairy said it could lead to a split in the party.
He said this was because there were those who believed there was no wrongdoing involving 1MDB and others like him who believed otherwise.
And until a new president comes out to admit that there was indeed a scandal, there would be no end to the issue and Umno would remain in political limbo.
“The president has his own problems and he is not thinking about 1MDB, and he is also good friends with Najib,” he told Mingguan Malaysia, referring to Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
“He is uncomfortable speaking about it, even though I know Ahmad Zahid has accepted the reality.”
Khairy, however, praised Najib over the latter’s management of the country’s economy, adding that he was still defending the system that was put in place by the previous administration, including implementing the goods and services tax (GST).
The former youth and sports minister said he was proud of Najib’s record in that aspect.
“It cannot be denied that what we implemented was perfect, it’s just that 1MDB was the reason we lost.”