'New party may not be able to form govt but we can be decisive force'
Shortly after Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced the formation of an “independent” Malay party, he told supporters that the party does not need to be big as long as they have committed members.
The party may not be able to win enough seats to form the government, he admitted but it could potentially become a force in deciding which bloc wins the next general election.
Shortly after Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced the formation of an “independent” Malay party, he told supporters that the party does not need to be big as long as they have committed members.
The party may not be able to win enough seats to form the government, he admitted but it could potentially become a force in deciding which bloc wins the next general election.
“When we contest, there is no way we can get enough seats to form the government, but we can become a group that could decide who wins (in the general election),” Mahathir told a crowd of about 300 supporters in at the Pullman Hotel in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur today.
He gave the example of when he contested and lost in the Malay-majority Kota Setar Selatan seat back in 1969.
He said he lost because the Malay votes were split between him and the other candidates which meant that non-Malay votes became the deciding factor even though they only made up about 5,000 votes out of about 32,000.
“If our party is organised, we can decide who we will choose and I am sure we will play an important role because we can decide who will win,” Mahathir said.
The new party does not need to be a “mass movement” like what Umno is, he said.
DAP, for example, was a more niche party as it had specific ideals and goals and those who joined DAP were those who are aligned with those ideals and goals, he explained.
During his speech to his supporters today, Mahathir also stressed that the new party was not about fighting for one’s personal interest but about fighting for the country.
“I hope that all of us can forget about personal interests and prioritise fighting for our people and helping our people.
“We must fight to have a developed country because once we have a developed country, we can enjoy many more benefits than we can imagine,” Mahathir said.
A 'noble' fight
He said they had formed this party because the other parties which were meant to fight for Malay rights had deviated from their original struggle.
Hence, there needed to be a new party which would truly fight for the rights of the Malay community, he said.
Those who are in power right now are only there for their own personal interests, he said, urging his supporters to not be influenced by those who tried to buy their support.
“Our fight must be continued because it is a noble one. It is not for ourselves, not to make ourselves rich or to get titles for ourselves, but it is for the development of our people,” he said.
Mahathir also recalled a conversation he had with a small-time Umno leader back when he was still the Umno president.
He said that man had complained he never received anything despite fighting for Umno for 20 years.
“I asked him how was the situation in his kampung. He said it was much better, the roads were tarred now, the houses had electricity and water supply and his son got a scholarship to study engineering in the US.
“But these kinds of people will say they did not receive anything until they get something for themselves,” Mahathir said.
Earlier today, Mahathir had announced the formation of an "independent" Malay party which he said would uphold Bersatu's original anti-corruption struggle.
The reason for the move was because he claimed Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin had “hijacked” Bersatu.
The former premier had also said his new party - which has yet to be named or registered with the Registrar of Societies (ROS) - would not be tied to Pakatan Harapan or Perikatan Nasional. It would be referred to as “Bebas” for now.
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