Najib’s Mahathir dilemma
Falling out with Dr Mahathir, the longest serving leader in Malaysia’s history, can be politically fatal as see with the ousting of former Umno president and prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
By Syed Jaymal Zahiid, The Malaysian Insider
Analysts believe Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad can actually become a liability to Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak’s fledgling leadership despite being instrumental in his rise to power.
His zealous call for Barisan Nasional (BN) to contest in the Penanti by-election has divided Umno and added unnecessary pressure on Najib who had before mooted the possibility of BN not fielding a candidate.
Najib now appears stuck with the headache of either accommodating the powerful and influential former prime minister or maintaining an image of a leader capable of making his own decisions.
“There is a possibility that it will keep recurring given how influential Mahathir is in Umno. Mahathir can be a very damaging factor to Umno and Najib but he can also be a positive one as well,” Ibrahim Suffian from the independent Merdeka Center told The Malaysian Insider.
“Whether they like it or not, Mahathir is extremely influential and he was the guy who recently shaped the country’s history and the political landscape is made in such a way that Umno will definitely have to stick with him for the coming years,” added Ibrahim.
Falling out with Dr Mahathir, the longest serving leader in Malaysia’s history, can be politically fatal as see with the ousting of former Umno president and prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
And in the case of the Penanti by-election, Dr Mahathir is showing signs that he is still keen on flexing his muscles to influence Umno’s direction which means that Najib must find ways to accommodate the former PM’s views to avoid upsetting his endorser.
Therefore Najib will now have to deal with not only external pressures in the form of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) but also pressure from within.
“And this would be difficult for Umno and Najib. The Umno president has to deal with this at the time where he faces the task of pushing for his reform agendas to regain public support towards the government,” said Ibrahim.
Another analyst, Dr Mustapha Ismail, a political science professor from Universiti Utara Malaysia, said that while it was right for a leader who helmed the party for 22 years to express his views, it was also tactically apt for the former Umno president to be “a bit more careful” with what he says publicly.
His statement on the Penanti by-election has left Najib facing a situation where he is forced to make a decision that may not please either and also cause further split in the party.
“Some Umno leaders do agree with Mahathir and some of them are keen to contest so you can see that Umno is divided in this issue.
“On one side, Najib has to think about Mahathir but at the same time he would not want to be seen as a leader bowing down to Mahathir’s wishes. This is certainly a difficult time for Najib but he has to take the risk and be firm.
“But the key indicator as to whether or not Mahathir is keen on exerting his influence on Umno is how he would react to Najib should he decide not to contest in the Penanti by-elections. This is definitely an interesting episode,” said Mustapha who added that he believes that Najib would most likely listen to his BN peers and decide not to contest against PKR at the Penanti polls.
Another political analyst and associate Professor with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Dr Agus Yusof, felt that Dr Mahathir did not make such statements with the intention of meddling with Najib’s leadership.
“I think the statement made by Mahathir was done in the spirit of strengthening Umno and BN. Unlike popular opinion, what he said was not a demand but more of an advice.
“Should Najib decide not to contest there, I don’t think Mahathir would lash out against him,” said Agus who also believes that Najib would most likely decide against contesting there.
Najib is expected to make public BN’s decision on whether or not the ruling coalition would field a candidate three days from now when the supreme council convenes.
