I'm ashamed Ibrahim Ali is my friend: Mahathir
Published on: Thursday, November 24, 2016
Putra Jaya: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he is embarrassed to be friends with Perkasa chief Datuk Ibrahim Ali. According to the former prime minister, Ibrahim has refused to be involved with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia because the party works with DAP. "I am ashamed. He is my friend, but he doesn't want to join Pribumi because we are friends with DAP," he told reporters at a press conference at the Perdana Leadership Foundation here Tuesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Dr Mahathir said Ibrahim will not work with DAP because he thinks it is jahat (bad). However, he said DAP, together with PKR and Parti Amanah Negara, had publicly stated that it respects the Federal Constitution and the status of the country's Rulers, among other things. "They accept Islam as the national religion. They accept the special status of the Malays and other bumiputras and they also accept Malay as the national language," he said.Dr Mahathir was responding to a question on Ibrahim announcing that he intends to contest in the next general election with a Malay rights political front.
ADVERTISEMENT
When asked if his responses mean he is cutting ties with Perkasa and Ibrahim, he replied: "I want to give him a chance."
ADVERTISEMENT
"He should withdraw. Don't break (us up) until there's a three-corner fight, four-corner fight," he said.He said Perkasa's intention to contest in the next general election is proof that the Malay rights group wants to help Barisan Nasional (BN) to win.He said Ibrahim Ali knew that a three-cornered fight would give an advantage to BN."He works for Najib. He knows that if there is more than a one-on-one fight, Najib will win and he is trying to let Najib win, he's pretending to fight for the Malays' rights."If he contests, it means he supports Najib because he will not win, Najib will win.Meanwhile, Ibrahim criticised Dr Mahathir Mohamad for his tendency to label anyone who disagrees with him as someone who receives bribes.He said it was unbecoming of a statesman to accuse individuals of all sorts of things just because they are not on his side."I completely deny the allegation and besides, I've contested as an independent before."I do not support Najib, that is 'fitnah' (slander). The reason Perkasa is contesting is because we disagree with Najib and want to bring about our own agenda," he said.On Nov 20, Ibrahim announced that Perkasa would field 50 candidates to contest under an independent ticket in the GE14 with a focus on Malay-majority areas.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
Daily Express Malaysia
