It was reported that at a closed door meeting held at the Pagoh Umno division meeting yesterday, Umno Deputy President Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was still his friend and that he would help him strengthen Umno and Barisan Nasional.
He said he would never betray the party even after being dropped from the Cabinet and urged those trying to persuade him to switch to the Opposition to stop doing so.
Muhyiddin’s speech is not a surprise to many netizens who have commented that he is not Anwar Ibrahim the real fighter.
Muhyiddin has the right to choose to remain committed to Umno struggle and cause; however, he should also stand by his principle and belief regarding issues surrounding the 1 MDB.
When the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib decided to drop him from the newly announced Cabinet, Muhyiddin has said that he accepted the decision but insisted that he stands by his principle and belief surrounding the 1 MDB.
His statement in his official Facebook page said “I have my own principle and stand in defending the people’s rights, the party’s reputation and the interest of the nation. If I am removed from the Cabinet because of this, then I gladly accept it”.
If he was prepared to speak up against the 1 MDB when he was still the deputy Prime Minister, risking being expelled from the Cabinet which finally happened, why should he now retreat?
Now that he is no longer a Cabinet member, he should speak out even more “in defending the people’s rights, the party’s reputation and the interest of the nation”.
It was also reported that Muhyiddin has pledged his loyalty to Umno and promised to continue to support the party struggle.
Can Umno’s interest be served if he as the number two leader now chooses to not talk about the 1 MDB when he has warned that Umno is suffering from the perception crisis of 1 MDB controversy and would lose a general election if one was held now.
More importantly, as the former Deputy Prime Minister and the deputy President of the largest component party of the ruling BN coalition, he should put the nation’s interest first and continue to speak up on 1 MDB.