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 ©New
Straits Times (Used by permission)
by Noor Adzman Baharuddin and Adib Povera
• Abdullah: Why should I leave?
• Najib urges members to remain calm
• I'm staying put, says Razaleigh
• Nik Aziz awakens to 'happy news'
• 'Quitting may well reflect his guilt'
• Ka Chuan warns of worry among people, investors
• Can he gain the momentum?
ALOR STAR: Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has
quit Umno saying he has totally lost confidence in its leadership.
He made the unexpected announcement in front of about 1,500 people at a forum in
response to a dare from one of the participants to lead the way in leaving the
party.
Asking other Umno members to follow in his footsteps, Dr Mahathir, 83, said they
should not join any other political parties but should rejoin Umno once Datuk
Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has resigned as party president and prime minister.
"The Malays, Umno members and many other people have sent him messages about
their dissatisfaction over his leadership, especially after the March 8
elections, but Abdullah has remained unaffected.
"We have to be radical and brave and this is the only way to bring him down," he
said to loud cheers at a talk on "The Future of Malays after the 12th General
Election", organised by the Kedah Malay Assembly Hall.
Among those present were assembly chairman Tan Sri Khalid
Abdullah, Jerlun Umno division chief Datuk Abdul Rahman Ariffin, Kuala Nerang
state assemblyman Datuk Syed Sobri Syed Syed Hashim, Sungai Tiang state
assemblyman Suraya Yaacob and former Kedah menteri besar Tan Sri Sanusi Junid.
Dr Mahathir, an Umno life member, announced his decision after someone asked if
he would take the lead since he had made the suggestion during his hour-long
talk earlier.
A member from the floor, who had identified himself as Ismail Jaziz, had asked
Dr Mahathir if he would take the lead since he had mooted the idea about members
resigning.
To this, Dr Mahathir, in a serious tone, said: "Waa, saya di cabar ni...(I have
been dared). Yes, I will leave Umno...until the party leadership is determined.
Other Umno members should follow me."
Later, at a press conference, Dr Mahathir said he would write to Umno
secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor over his decision soon.
Asked if many Umno members would take up his challenge, he said it was up to
them to prioritise Abdullah or the party's struggles.
"It is up to them to follow or not, but if they think they should continue
supporting Pak Lah and give priority to Datuk Abdullah (Ahmad) Badawi over the
party's struggles, it is their right."
He said it was high time for Umno members who loved the party to be bold for the
future of the Malays. Such a move would not cause the Malays to lose their
political power.
"The Malays would not lose their political power. They want to correct things
not because they simply want to leave.
"If they are brave and want to safeguard the party and the Malay struggles, then
they must also be brave to take action.
"However, we find that many Umno members can't even attend certain gatherings...
division chairmen also cannot attend... what is this?"
Dr Mahathir said when Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah opposed him before, former prime
minister Tunku Abdul Rahman had thrown in his support for his opponent and that
he never stopped any member from campaigning against him.
"Now, we cannot say anything against the prime minister or the party president.
This is not Umno," he said.
Asked if Umno state assemblymen and MPs should also quit the party, he said they
should if they truly loved the party.
Dr Mahathir reiterated he would only rejoin Umno after Abdullah had resigned his
posts.
Asked if his call and decision could be construed as him giving up on the party,
he said he would not ask others to follow him if he himself was afraid to do so.
Earlier, Dr Mahathir said quitting the party would not weaken Umno because he
himself was expelled from the party for three years from 1969.
"Umno remained strong and it continued to get support from members who were
honest in fighting for the race, religion and country then."
He said he was compelled to issue a strong message to the Umno leadership to
start listening to members' needs and not heed only suggestions and advice from
a small group of powerful people.
He said Abdullah was not suitable to lead the nation because he was too soft and
would give in to Singapore, the United States, Hindraf and the Bar Council.
He said Abdullah had consistently refused to accept the fact that under his
leadership, Umno and Barisan Nasional were on the verge of collapse after they
lost five states, including the Federal Territory, and failed to recapture
Kelantan.
"He is responsible for destroying BN component parties like the MCA, MIC,
Gerakan and PPP when they lost miserably in the last elections.
"As a result, the Chinese and Indian communities, which had been ardent
supporters of BN, no longer have confidence in the ruling coalition."
Dr Mahathir said the people of Kedah should also do something for being treated
unfairly by Abdullah since they did not have any representative in the cabinet.
"We lost Perak, Penang, Selangor and Kelantan but they have representatives in
the cabinet, but why is there no one from Kedah?"
Asked if his decision had anything to do with the V.K. Lingam video clip
controversy, Dr Mahathir denied it.
"Nope. That is a court matter and I will go to the courts.
"If they make allegations against me, I could also do the same and if I am found
guilty, they can put me in jail but if I am not guilty, please don't arrest me
."
Abdullah: Why should I leave?
KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, shocked that Tun Dr Mahathir
Mohamad would resort to quitting Umno, reiterated that he would not succumb to
pressure and step down as party president and prime minister.
"Why should I? I have work to do," Abdullah said in response
to Dr Mahathir's demand that he resign to take sole responsibility for the
election results.
"What is important now is for the party to remain calm and for members to
realise they must be loyal if they want Umno to be strong and to continue with
its struggle."
Abdullah was confident the majority of members would stay with the party and
support the leadership.
"I know that they care about the party. If they still love the party, they will
not leave," he told a packed press conference here yesterday.
Abdullah, however, did not deny that Dr Mahathir's resignation could influence
some Umno members to walk out with the former party president.
"Yes, it may happen because we have about three million members. But I don't
think the members of parliament will take the same action.
"If we are true Umno members, we must be patient. If a member does not want to
be with Umno any more, it means the party's spirit and struggle are no longer in
him.
"If they want Umno to be strong, there would be no logic for them to leave the
party," he said.
Abdullah said he would not give in to Dr Mahathir's long-running campaign to
unseat him from the leadership of the party and country.
"I am a loyal party member who has never left the party and I will continue to
fight for the party.
"Umno has contributed much to the people and our nation of many races - it all
depends on us," he said.
Dr Mahathir's resignation would be discussed at the next party supreme council
meeting but Abdullah dismissed a question on whether he would meet his
predecessor.
Najib urges members to remain calm
by Roziana Hamsawi in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
UMNO deputy president Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, while expressing shock
and sadness over Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's resignation from Umno, urged Umno
members to remain calm, saying he would continue to discuss with party president
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on efforts to strengthen the party.
Najib also said it was crucial that the Barisan Nasional
government, which had been given the mandate to rule by the people, continue to
perform its responsibility as mandated by the rakyat and not be affected by
Umno's internal issues.
Reading from a statement here, when meeting Malaysian journalists attending the
"World Economic Forum on the Middle East", Najib, who is also deputy prime
minister, advised Umno members to continue to have faith in the efforts to
rebuild the party.
"I am very shocked and sad that Dr Mahathir has announced his decision to leave
Umno. He has contributed a lot to the party and country. I have met with Tun
before this and I am willing to meet him to discuss his latest action."
Najib noted that previously any problems were resolved within Umno.
"Umno is a party which is sacred to the Malays and has been
the backbone of the Malay struggle for a long time and will be so in the future.
I will continue to discuss with party president Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
on efforts to strengthen the party and also on the transfer of party leadership
as expressed by the president himself."
Najib is scheduled to return to Kuala Lumpur tomorrow morning.
I'm staying put, says Razaleigh
by Adib Povera
ALOR STAR: Gua Musang Member of Parliament Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah said quitting
Umno is not the way to revive the party's fortunes.
He said he would not join Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's in
resigning because "there are many ways to improve Umno's image".
"Dr Mahathir has made up his mind and I have my own stand on the matter.
"I am an Umno member and I will remain one and will contest for the party
president's post in December," he said when asked about the former prime
minister's decision to resign in protest against party president Datuk Seri
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's refusal to step down after the March 8 general election.
At the talk organised by the Kedah Malay Assembly Hall, Dr Mahathir also asked
Umno members at all levels to follow in his footsteps.
Tengku Razaleigh said: "Dr Mahathir must have thought it out
before announcing his decision.
"It would shock the nation but must also be seen as a wake-up call for Umno
members."
He said some would heed Dr Mahathir's call as the former prime minister was
influential.
Nik Aziz awakens to 'happy news'
KOTA BARU: "I am the happiest person now," said Pas spiritual leader Datuk Nik
Abdul Aziz Nik Mat on hearing that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had resigned from
Umno.
"I was asleep when I received a call from a Pas supreme
council member informing me that (Dr Mahathir) had left Umno.
"I cannot describe my feeling after hearing the news," he said at his home
yesterday.
Nik Abdul Aziz, who is Kelantan menteri besar, said Dr Mahathir should have
resigned a long time ago and not when Umno was facing problems.
"His decision to resign now might cause others who planned to join Umno to
cancel their plans as they may be confused," he said.
Meanwhile, Kelantan Umno liaison chairman Datuk Seri Annuar
Musa said Dr Mahathir could be described as having "betrayed" the party as he
had invited Umno members to follow in his footsteps.
"He has forgotten that, at one time, he had advised Umno members to always be
with the party, no matter what happened.
"He said party leaders would come and go but members should stay and be united
with the party.
"I think his decision to resign and invite others to join him is to put pressure
on Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi."
People's Progressive Party deputy president Datuk Nik Sapiea Nik Yusof said Dr
Mahathir could join the PPP and choose any post he wanted.
"We welcome him to our party so that he can continue with his Vision 2020
concept. Party members believe that only he can achieve that vision."
'Quitting may well reflect his guilt'
KUALA LUMPUR: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed is ruining the party which kept him in
power for 22 years, DAP national chairman Karpal Singh said.
The Bukit Gelugor member of parliament said Dr Mahathir was
"unabashedly" showing his true colours.
"He has brought upon himself the ominous act of resigning from Umno with a view,
obviously, to destabilise the government of Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
"Dr Mahathir has shown that he is incapable of becoming a statesman. He has been
and remains a gutter politician."
Karpal said Dr Mahathir, identified by the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the
Lingam video clip as one of six personalities to be investigated, was the
Barisan Nasional chairman and prime minister at the time the alleged offences
were committed.
"He should be brave enough to remain an Umno member until he
clears his name. Dr Mahathir should not panic and desert his party now.
"One who panics exhibits signs of weakness."
He said Dr Mahathir's resignation would not absolve him of the alleged
improprieties and possible criminal offences committed by him during his tenure
as prime minister.
"In fact, his resignation may well reflect his guilt."
Ka Chuan warns of worry among people, investors
IPOH: The MCA has urged Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad to reconsider his decision to
quit Umno as it would do "neither Umno nor Barisan Nasional any good" and could
start new problems.
Its secretary-general Datuk Ong Ka Chuan said the former
prime minister's move could create uneasiness among the people and investors.
The housing and local government minister said this was because Dr Mahathir was
a much loved and respected leader who drew attention whenever he made decisions.
He hoped BN leaders and veterans would come together and seek a resolution to
the problem.
On the findings of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Lingam video clip,
he said they were just part of the inquiry report on which the cabinet had yet
to make a decision.
"The Attorney-General's Chambers is looking into the legal
aspects of the report. I'm confident the decision made will be a good one and
will not hurt anybody."
Can he gain the momentum?
Comment by Zubaidah Abu Bakar
WAS it political brinkmanship? Or could it be a mis-step for Tun Dr Mahathir
Mohamad, whose repeated calls for Umno members to quit have backfired, forcing
him to announce that he himself was leaving the party he once led for 22 years?
These were some of the questions raised in Umno circles when
the former prime minister -- whose party membership number 00001 tells the whole
story -- dropped the bombshell at a forum on "The Position of Malays post-12th
General Election" in Alor Star yesterday.
There were shouts of support when Dr Mahathir said he would return to the party
following a leadership change. He said Umno was no longer the same party that
was formed 62 years ago to fight for Malay interests, rights and privileges.
"But now it has become a party merely to support Abdullah's leadership, serve
his, his family's and his cronies' interests," he alleged again.
During his term as prime minister, Dr Mahathir had also been accused many times
of nepotism and cronyism but he denied it. Many in the Alor Star audience were
dumbfounded by his announcement, asking each other whether they had heard him
right.
The 82-year-old former party president has been waging a war
of words against his hand-picked successor Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for
more than two years, but had given no indication that he would quit the party.
Why now?
"Why did he do that? Now, we do not have a platform to fight for Umno's
survival," said a former divisional delegate to the party general assembly who
is now an ordinary member of the Kubang Pasu division, which Dr Mahathir once
led.
Does this mean that his staunch supporters would follow in his footsteps en
masse and cause irreparable cracks in Umno?
At least one, Tan Sri Sanusi Junid, the former Umno secretary-general during
whose term in office Umno was declared an unlawful party by the courts, said
immediately that he was following "his boss".
Associate Professor Mohammad Agus Yusoff of Universiti Malaya did not rule out
that more members would quit the party and said this may further weaken Umno.
But there are those who believe Dr Mahathir's resignation is the former prime
minister's latest strategy in forcing Abdullah to step down.
There is also the view that his move was to deflect attention from the Lingam
video clip issue, in which he was implicated. But Dr Mahathir denies this.
Whatever his reasons, his timing comes at a critical point for Umno following
the Barisan Nasional's dismal performance in the March general election where
some party members had asked for Abdullah's resignation.
Dr Mahathir has been churning the ground to get party members to rebel against
Abdullah's leadership.
But he has been frustrated that his calls to push Abdullah to resign have not
snowballed the way that he had wanted, said a divisional leader in the crowd.
"So, he is now asking party members in Kedah to quit by trying to convince them
that those in other states would also be doing so; just to try and build
momentum.
"But it backfired when someone from the floor challenged him to fulfil what he
preached by leading the way and quitting," the divisional leader said.
However, Dr Mahathir will face a problem in getting followers.
Professor Mohamed Mustaffa Ishak of Universiti Utara Malaysia believed members
eyeing for posts at the division level would only follow in Dr Mahathir's
footsteps if they failed in their bids.
Dr Mahathir is not any ordinary member and he does enjoy considerable support,
having led the party for 22 years. Certainly his resignation will have an impact
on Umno -- negative or otherwise.
The next few days will be crucial. If the momentum does not build up, it will
end up as a vain attempt by Dr Mahathir, who has never had a good relationship
with any of his deputies when he was prime minister or with any of his
predecessors such as Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tun Hussein Onn, to control the
party in retirement.
If there is momentum, the highly-charged political atmosphere after the March 8
general election will go up another notch.
But the sad fact for Umno is that the call for its members to quit will benefit
only opposition political parties and Dr Mahathir may, knowingly or otherwise,
be playing into the hands of Umno's rivals at a time when its leaders are making
efforts to revive and rebuild.
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