Listen to professionals instead of politicians if you really want to end Covid-19 crises, Dr Mahathir tells Muhyiddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 17 — KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 17 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin should act on advice from professionals instead of his Bersatu party colleagues if he were serious about resolving the health and economic crises brought on by the pandemic, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today.

Dr Mahathir who was sacked last year from the party he had co-founded with Muhyiddin in 2016 said his successor appeared to be more preoccupied with staying in power and ignorant of the chronic Covid-19 problems plaguing Malaysians.

“I find that Muhyiddin has yet to show that he understands the problems he is facing right now; all he knows is that he wants to be the PM.

“I feel if Muhyiddin wants to become the PM, he needs to utilise his advisers, those with experience, and not to make a party member an adviser, it’s no use,” Dr Mahathir said during an interview with Sinar Harian aired live on Facebook today.

Dr Mahathir said that Muhyiddin alone is incapable of solving all of the country’s problems, suggesting he establish a committee similar to that of the National Operations Council which was implemented following the 1969 racial riots, led by then deputy prime minister premier Tun Abdul Razak Hussein.

“We should be doing it like how it was done during Tun Razak’s time, where he formed the council and took in only those who were experts in their field to advise him,” he said.

Dr Mahathir acknowledged that Muhyiddin was appointed prime minister in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic, but then suggested his former party colleague’s ego would get in the way of his decision making.

Dr Mahathir claimed Muhyiddin was a person who valued loyalty above all, and would not hesitate to get rid of those who as much as express doubt over his leadership.

“Go and find out if he supports me or not, if he doesn’t support me then he cannot work with me. This is the attitude that Muhyiddin has.

“When he sees he is not getting enough support, he asked for the Emergency to be declared so that he can remain as the PM, and I cannot support such action,” he said.

Dr Mahathir and together with Muhyiddin founded Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, which became a component of the Pakatan Harapan coalition that won the 2018 general election.

But 22 months later, the PH government collapsed after Muhyiddin led Bersatu to withdraw from the coalition, along with a faction of MPs from PKR led by Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali. Their collaboration with PAS and other smaller parties resulted in the rise of the Perikatan Nasional coalition to power.