Umno vice-president Shafie Apdal today appeared to take a subtle jibe at Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's management of the economy, stating that the country should not "blame others" for its current economic woes.

Shafie made a tongue-in-cheek reference to George Soros, saying that the government is unable to blame the billionaire cum currency speculator for the country’s economic downturn this time.

“We do not have George Soros, like we did in the past. If it was because of Soros, we can understand,” he said when officially opening the Jerlun Umno division annual general meeting in Kedah today.

Then premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad had blamed Soros' currency speculation activities for the collapse of the ringgit during the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis.

Shafie noted that the country is once again facing a fall in its currency, with the ringgit now at RM4.10 to the US dollar, a 17-year low.

“The only profit we have seem to be from the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It is not that the GST should not be implemented but it burdens the people,” Shafie said.

Shafie was echoing the voice of many Malaysians who criticised the implementation of the six percent GST nationwide in April this year.

Shafie conceded that some of global problems have affected the country, such as the devaluation of China currency which has caused the ringgit to fall.

“But what about our own internal problems?” he asked.

Shafie, together with former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, were last month removed from the government for criticising Najib's handling of 1MDB.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak had blamed the weak ringgit on falling prices of commodities and financial policy changes in the US and China, as well as speculations over the country's troubled political situation.

MACC left out of task force

Earlier in his speech, Shafie asked delegates if it was wrong for him to ask questions about 1MDB.

To this, the 1,000 delegates who attended the division’s meeting replied in a resounding “No!”.

Shafie also questioned why the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was not included in the new task force, which will reportedly be formed by attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali.

“If we want to investigate misappropriation of funds, the MACC should be in the task force,” Shafie said.

However, MACC deputy chief commissioner Shukri Abdull told The Star that the anti-corruption body would nevertheless continue its investigation into the RM42million probe of SRC International Sdn Bhd.

Shafie also focused part of his speech on Umno, saying that the question today was how to improve the party, and how to restore faith and confidence in the leadership.

He vehemently denied he was involved in a clandestine plot to get rid of Najib, as alleged by several Umno blogs.

He was referring to Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi who said he smelled a plot by an unnamed Umno leader to topple the government.

“How can it be when I am one of the founders of Umno in Sabah,” said the Semporna MP.