Umno Supreme Council member Tajuddin Abdul Rahman said it was inappropriate for the former premier to insult party members by calling them “deaf, mute and blind” just because of their loyalty towards the party and its current President and Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Mahathir made this cutting remark about Umno members in his blog post today, claiming that bribes from Najib had rendered the Malay party’s members incapable of voicing their suspicions of their party president’s alleged wrongdoings.
“Don’t insult us like that. Umno members were the ones who stood by his (Mahathir) side and supported him during his 22 years as prime minister.
“I was there when Dr Mahathir was Umno president, when he was the prime minister. So what are we? Deaf? Corrupt? It’s not fair to insult us like that. That is not right,” he told reporters at the lobby of Parliament here today.
He also questioned Mahathir’s definition of “speaking up”, saying that Umno’s practice had always been to discuss any disagreement through the proper channels.
“How does he know whether we have been speaking up? Don’t tell me he wants us to shout by the roadside? We do speak up, but in appropriate places like supreme council meetings.
“We offer our opinions and advice. So he is measuring how outspoken we are based on his own approach. Do we have to join street demonstrations like him for us not to be considered mute? So if we speak in the Dewan Rakyat, are we still mute?”
He added that most Umno members had voiced their thoughts on current issues during its annual general assembly.
“We’ve seen how loud the members are when voicing their criticism, advice and comments.
“It’s disappointing that such remarks are coming from a fellow statesman,” the MP for Pasir Salak said.