Mahathir ‘sees Najib as a liability’

Dr Mahathir Mohamad has begun to pressure Premier Najib Abdul Razak to step down, just as he did with Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, PAS vice-president Mahfuz Omar claims.

It was reported yesterday that Mahathir had advised Najib to delay the next election in order to properly vet BN candidates.

“As I see it, Umno and BN are either facing candidacy issues or the party itself is having problems, that it is not (in a) winnable (position). Mahathir is giving a message to Najib that he is not winnable,” Mahfuz told a press conference at the PAS headquarters today.

“He is seen as a liability to the government, Umno and BN. By asking for a delay, it is an admission that there is pressure inside Umno for Najib to step down before the next general election,” he said.

Mahathir said on Monday that the selection of winnable candidates for the next general election would cause disputes between party leaderships and grassroot members.

It appears, according to Mahfuz, that “Mahathir has returned as a mastermind to pull down Najib”, albeit using a different approach than that applied to Abdullah.

“There will be groups that will follow Mahathir’s lead, as happened during the movement to bring down (Abdullah),” he said.

Mahathir had targeted Abdullah to the extent of quitting Umno, and only returned after the latter stepped down following the March 8 electoral debacle.