KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 15 — Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today he would be open to working with his former party Umno again but with a caveat.
He said party leaders charged in court for any crimes, whether they have been found guilty or not, must step down from leadership roles before he would consider cooperating.
“Yes, yes, they must (step down),” he said during a “live” interview on BFM Radio this morning.
“I will not work with people who are charged in court for crimes, whether they have been found guilty or not,” he added.
Dr Mahathir said it would be disappointing if those facing trials end up walking away scot-free.
“People know they are guilty. It would be a sad day when the whole world knows people have stolen money and the courts say, no, they have not stolen.
“It will be a sad day for our judiciary,” he said without naming anyone.
Dr Mahathir now heads Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang), his latest political outfit, after he was ousted from Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) last year, despite being one of its founding members.
Dr Mahathir resigned as prime minister and from Bersatu last year following the Sheraton Move, leading to the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government, before forming Pejuang with a group of former Bersatu leaders in Sept last year.
Before that, the nonagenarian had been a member of Umno for more than 60 years, serving as prime minister for 22 years, before leaving the party in 2016 to form Bersatu.
The former prime minister openly admitted during today’s interview that due to the size of Pejuang, which has yet to be registered as an official political party after its bid to do so was rejected by the Registrar of Societies last week, it would not be able to form any government on its own.
However, he insisted on the narrative of a bigger party choosing to work with Pejuang to form a majority, instead of them seeking to be included into a bigger coalition.
“A major party will have to work with us in order to form the government.
“Because in an election, it is most likely that neither the left nor the right, neither Perikatan Nasional nor Pakatan Harapan will get a clear majority,” he said.
