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Yoursay: Lessons of old M’sia – trust no politicians

YOURSAY | What Dr M and Anwar are doing is befriending enemies to serve their own ends.

As Umno MPs quit, news surfaces of Hisham-Dr M meet

Sirach: Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s meeting with former Umno minister Hishammuddin Hussein looks like a strategy to check PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim’s presumption to automatic succession.

If so, it’s a worthwhile strategy although it must be done with caution. Anwar should not think he’s entitled to be prime minister. The Pakatan Harapan coalition must pick the best candidate to succeed Mahathir.

People like Mustapa Mohamed (Tok Pa) are untainted by scandal and should be welcomed to strengthen Bersatu and by extension, Harapan.

We have to trust Mahathir to do what’s best for the nation.

Not Convinced: Those who had lived through Mahathir Mark I era also trusted what the doctor ordered, and look at what that had gotten us – 20 lost years.

We should trust no leaders – not Mahathir, not Anwar, not anyone.

Jehangir: Now all these Umno people are saying that they are against Umno because the party is not inclusive and not moderate (read: Mustapa).

You mean Umno has become more racist and more extremist of late, after GE14? Indeed, racism and extremism have been Umno's staple, it’s not an overnight thing.

The only thing that has happened since GE14 is that Umno has completely run out of cash. These people should not be easily accepted into Bersatu. They are the cause of Najib and Jho Low having it easy with 1MDB money. They refused to go against Najib.

How difficult of them to abandon power and how easy it is for them to abandon the powerless now. They are the worst kind.

Hopeful123: The younger generation in Bersatu like Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman must put down their foot and reject all these ex-Umno/BN parasites. Mahathir, in wanting to strengthen his party, may close one or both eyes.

On the other hand, we, the rakyat, are also confused as to what Anwar actually wants. Is he also going to let these crooks to infiltrate Harapan?

Be fair to all those who have worked hard in Harapan to see a new Malaysia. There are capable leaders among them. We don't need recycled trash from Umno/BN. Don't disappoint the rakyat.

All the crooks and thieves from the deposed government must be brought to justice. There are no two ways about that. Let us all see the rule of law being practised, not just preached.

Undecided: If we are objective, leaders like Hishammuddin, Mustapa and Anifah Aman are probably leaders who are comparative cleaner and more capable than those top leaders presently in Umno.

If they have not committed any crimes and are committed to reforms of Harapan, they should be given the chance to contribute to Bersatu/Harapan.

Ferdtan: Mahathir is a political fixer – he makes things happen his way.

My hunch is that since Bersatu's president Muhyiddin Yassin is not too healthy, Mahathir is looking for another senior leader who’s acceptable to him, even if from the opposition. And I think it is Hishammuddin, who may replace the indisposed Muhyiddin.

Mahathir owes ex-prime minister Hussein Onn a great favour, and now he may be returning the favour to his son, Hishammuddin.

The favour? It was during the time when then-prime minister Hussein Onn needed a deputy and he was going to choose his favourite, Ghazali Shafie, as the No 2. But Ghazali was an outsider and not one of the three elected Umno vice-presidents.

In order of priority based on the number of votes won was Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, Ghafar Baba and lastly Mahathir. Since the party forced Hussein to choose among the three, he chose the least popular candidate, Mahathir. And the rest is history.

P Dev Anand Pillai: Mahathir is making his moves to pre-empt any attempt of forcing him to hand over power in two years.

Two years is a long time in politics, so by enticing Umno MPs out and allowing them to become Bersatu members, Bersatu becomes stronger and will be able to thwart any attempt from PKR to seek the prime minister's post.

The old sifu is a great Machiavellian politician.

Lionking: With the abandoning of sinking ship, we must not lose sight of these Umno, MIC, MCA and the other puny parties were all in cahoots or were members of the previous government.

They are fully responsible for landing Malaysia in a precarious state. None of these people did anything and probably were riding the gravy train.

We need to ask ourselves: Would these politicians have done anything if BN remained in power after the 14th general election?

The answer is a big “no”. Umno would have continued chanting the mantra of “race and religion”.

The present government is spoilt for choice with so many qualified people that none of the Umno or other BN party members is required.

Next question is: Are these politicians clean or did they also not have knowledge of what was happening?

RedHero: Harapan has to be very careful. All these Umno members have come to the realisation that Umno will never get back federal power for a long time to come and their association with PAS is just temporary.

More importantly, they have lost the gravy train that has sustained them and their families for decades, when most of them have no day job or have no other skills to survive.

They have been fed with freebies for decades and cannot imagine going through this stagnation for one, two or even three terms.

Let them abandon Umno as this is their right but scrutinise each application and if they are accepted, they should not get any guarantees.

They must not escape investigation or punishment for all their past wrongdoing by joining Harapan and they must not be given any positions in Harapan or any MP or Adun seats in GE15 – this should be reserved for the loyal and hardworking Harapan members.

Kahlil Gibran: Getting rid of Umno – is it really a good thing? Once Umno is destroyed, where is the opposition?

Once everyone joins Harapan, what politics are well talking about? This is what happened in 1969. All the opposition parties joined the Alliance and formed BN.

Then whatever was left was a weak opposition. This is the big fight between Mahathir and Anwar all over again. We are back to 1998. What a mess the country is in!

Malaysia Baru Phasa Kedua: I never could understand Mahathir and Anwar. The worst thing Mahathir and Anwar are doing is befriending enemies to serve their own ends.

Remember, Mahathir and Anwar, the whole nation is trusting you both. But both of you are more concerned with yourselves. Both of you are betraying the trust given to you. This is the unkindest cut of all.


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