Najib no longer enjoys party, grassroots support

Former information minister Tan Sri Zainuddin Maidin today urged Malaysians to join Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who is in Mecca, to pray that Datuk Seri Najib Razak will step down as the prime minister.

Writing in his blog today, Zainuddin, who has made no secret of his admiration for the former prime minister Dr Mahathir, said that Najib no longer enjoys the support of the people, including those from his own party.

He predicted that the prime minister would be informed about it this afternoon when the Umno supreme council meets.

"To all the Malays and Muslims of Malaysia, let us all join Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who is in Mecca, in prayer that Allah opens the heart of the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak so that he makes a wise move and steps down at the right time to save the pride of the people, religion and country," the former minister said.

He added that based on information received, all Umno supreme council members accept the fact that Najib does not have the support of the grassroots, especially within his own party.

"They would probably tell him politely and in a respectful manner at the Umno supreme council meeting this afternoon," Zainuddin said, adding that Umno Women's chief Datuk Shahrizat Abdul Jalil had hinted it on TV3 this morning that whatever happens, it should be done in such a way that the party does not break up.

Prior to this, pro-Umno blogger Shahbudin Husin said that there were leaders in Federal Territory branches who contacted him to voice their support for some of the motions against Najib.

"There are a few branch leaders who contacted me. They said that, by right, the motion urging Najib to resign should be put forward.

"But because they finished their meetings earlier, they could not raise the motion," he said.

Calls for Malaysia's sixth prime minister to resign have risen since pilgrims’ fund Lembaga Tabung Haji confirmed buying land from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) – the state strategic investor whose RM42 billion debt has pushed even retired Dr Mahathir to ask for Najib's ouster.

Dr Mahathir said that Umno and Barisan Nasional will lose the next general election if he Najib did not resign.

As Umno celebrates its 69th anniversary today and apart from the usual speech highlighting the importance of unity, many also expect to hear how Najib, the Umno president plans to deal with criticisms against his leadership.

Zainuddin in his blog today added that despite Najib saying he will not bow down to pressure, inevitably the strength and weaknesses of his leadership will be mentioned as discussions take place this evening.

He said Supreme Council members should be brave and step up this evening to inform Najib that the support he believed he has been getting was false.

He added that both Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin should act like true leaders and speak openly about the matters at hand.

At the same time, Zainuddin said Najib should not compare his stance and support with that of Dr Mahathir in 1987 because the circumstances were different.

“At the time, although the party was split, Dr Mahathir dared to hold on to power because he had the support of the people from outside the party, from the Malays, Chinese and Indians. BN's position in Parliament then was also strong.

“But now, the Chinese and Indians do not support Najib, giving him ‘false I love you’s’.”

As for Najib's so-called support for Dr Mahathir then, Zainuddin, quoting a message from an unnamed Umno official, said it was not true.

The message said Najib was playing safe and if not for the pressure from Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, he would not have done so at the time.

He added that Najib's brand of transformation initiative did not bring positive change but instead led to dwindling support and trust among the people, including the loss of respect among multi-ethnic and multi-religious societies following the abolishing of the Internal Security Act, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) debts and, most recently, the purchase of TRX land by pilgrims’ fund, Tabung Haji.

"He was boasting about millions in profits but depositors did not care about all that. They are not seeking to profit from saving money in Tabung Haji. They were investing for the hereafter (going for haj), not worldly monetary profit," he said.

He said such announcements only angered and hurt the people further, and that Najib had failed to view the issue from the eyes of the people who were looking at it from a spiritual point of view.

"This was clear evidence that Najib has failed to grasp the people's feelings," he said.