PKR vice-president N Surendran pointed out that political differences with Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is not a legally valid reason to remove ex-premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad as advisor to national oil firm Petronas.

"In terminating the appointment of Mahathir, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) shockingly admited that it is because Mahathir ‘is no longer supporting the current government’.

“Now, whether Mahathir is supporting the current government or not has nothing to do with either the objectives or administration of Petronas. It is not a valid reason to terminate Mahathir's appointment simply because he has political differences with the PM," said Surendran in a statement today.

He argued that the termination of Mahathir as Petronas advisor is a wrongful, and consequently unlawful, exercise of executive power.

He conceded that Najib has extensive powers over the administration and appointments of Petronas pursuant to Section 3(2) of the Petroleum Development Act 1974, which puts Petronas under the direction and control of the PM.

"However, the PM’s power in this regard is not absolute - in a democracy, there is no such thing as absolute power or discretion," argued the Padang Serai MP.

Surendran added that the premier must exercise his powers under the Act, consistent with its objectives - which is for the “exploration and exploitation of petroleum” by Petronas.

Any act outside its scope would be a wrongful exercise of power; hence, he argued that the PMO’s statement is tantamount to admitting to wrongful and arbitrary exercise of executive power, which would be open to legal challenge.

Only one option

"Dr Mahathir's removal thus being tainted and unlawful, the PM and his cabinet have only one option: they must restore Mahathir to his position as advisor of Petronas," concluded Surendran.

Meanwhile, former Umno leader Khairuddin Abu Hassan warned that Mahathir's sacking as Petronas advisor may backfire on Najib.

"However, thanks to the the unpopular decision by Najib's unwise cabinet, this will make Malaysians more aware of the cruelness of the current leadership.

"The unwise cabinet decision will hasten and add impetus to the move to oust the most (seemingly) corrupt leader in our political history," he said in a statement.

On another note, Kuala Terengganu MP Raja Bahrin Shah saw the move as spiteful and unnecessary - given Mahahir's advisory role and his prestigious history of service to the nation.

"Mahathir is only an advisor and his advice does not have to be followed if it is not necessary. He is not CEO, nor (does he) have executive powers.

“This is against the good manners - as espoused in Islam and the Malay culture - to give due respect to the dignity of elders, what more the former PM who has international acclaim," he said in a statement.

He warned that Mahathir’s removal would only make Najib look worse in the eyes of the world, after sacking his DPM and Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin, former attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail, senior Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and police Special Branch officers, as well other key officials.

Yesterday, the PMO issued a statement stating that Najib's cabinet has decided to remove Mahathir as Petronas advisor because the ex-premier has exhibited irreconcilable differences with the present leadership, and thus must be excised out of all government linked bodies.