Dr M on Harapan's popularity : We made no mistake, just communication flaws
At its meeting today, Pakatan Harapan had discussed "allegations" that it was not well-liked by the people, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Speaking at a press conference after chairing a Harapan presidential meeting, Mahathir said the ruling coalition had made no mistake itself but it was weak in communication.
At its meeting today, Pakatan Harapan had discussed "allegations" that it was not well-liked by the people, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Speaking at a press conference after chairing a Harapan presidential meeting, Mahathir said the ruling coalition itself had made no mistake but it was weak in communication.
"We had a fruitful meeting today. We discussed a lot about the allegation that the Harapan parties are not well-liked by the people and (the allegation) that we will lose if we go to election battlefield today.
"So we want to know why," said Mahathir who is also Harapan chairperson.
"We discussed at length what was our mistake. We found there was no mistake at all, (but) our communication was not good," he said.
He slammed extremist groups whom he said were totally ungrateful for the fact that they lived in a peaceful country, unlike some war-torn Middle East countries.
"I find these extremist groups were ungrateful that (they live in a) peaceful (country) despite we having petty issues on race and religion," he said.
The prime minister also took the media to task for playing up controversial issues surrounding race and religion.
"When we explained about our success (stories), the press asked other questions. And they love controversial (issues). So we have to provide them with such stories for their pleasure," he said.
"In fact, these issues can be resolved in the cabinet and by the government. However, when many of these (types of) news stoke the public's anger, petty issues snowball into a serious matter that split the races," he said.
He appealed to the media not to sensationalise such issues.
"I ask, I beg with the media not to play up racial and religious issues. If you want to report, report the truth. I am worried about the antagonism between the races and religions. And when this happens, it is not easy for us to calm things down," he said.
He said Harapan decided to have better communication with the media, both mainstream and online media and urged them to report the peaceful situation of the country.
When asked about some Harapan grassroots leaders themselves coming out with their own statements, Mahathir said these lower-rank leaders did not know the real issues.
Mahathir dismissed a question from the media that his administration would go after media which appeared not to cooperate with the government.
"We have (assured) the freedom of the press in our manifesto. You are asking me to say it again," he said, adding that he had never run away from the media.
Elaborating further, he said Harapan could win a general election if it was held today because he was confident that the people would reject former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak who was allegedly involved in bribery.
It was previously reported that the approval rating for the Harapan government fell from 79 percent to 39 percent between May 31, 2018, to March 11, 2019.
This was before the controversial khat or Jawi calligraphy issue and the incident where controversial foreign preacher Zakir Naik uttered remarks that angered Hindus and Chinese in Malaysia.
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