Commenting on a survey conducted by youth group the Challenger, Deputy Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Tajuddin Abdul Rahman said the ruling party would not agree to oust Najib just because the majority of the 5,006 university students polled by the group no longer had confidence in his administration.
“5,000 students out of hundreds of thousands of students is not a good representation of how the youth actually feel about the prime minister. It is such a small number and while we can listen, we can’t take the findings seriously.
“The opinions of university students do not necessarily represent the aspirations and the goals of the majority of the rakyat. These students are intelligent but they have yet to be exposed to the real world.
“I was a student activist back in the late 1960s and, of course, in universities it’s normal for students to be vocal and critical against the establishment. When they come out, they will change as they will become more balanced and moderate.”
He then posed a question to the students in the Challenger’s survey who had demanded for Najib’s resignation.
“Who do they think will replace Umno if we lose the next general election? It will be DAP. And do you think DAP will provide them with job opportunities, education, development and security?
“Only stupid people cannot understand DAP’s real agenda which is to abolish all the privileges provided to Bumiputeras right now,” said Tajuddin when contacted by FMT.
Kinabatangan MP Bung Mokhtar Radin echoed the same sentiments before lashing out at Challenger’s spokesperson Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman who he said should be investigated by the authorities.
“The authorities should look at the procedures and regulations implemented in public universities where this survey was conducted. The group has definitely breached some rules and, hence, should be subject to appropriate action.
“There is no need for Syed Saddiq to pretend to be busier than politicians themselves, especially if the sentiment is shared by only a few thousand students. There are millions of Malaysians who support Najib.
“He is just trying to act as a hero who is attempting to topple the prime minister, but he forgot that he is still just a student,” said Bung, adding that he would not be surprised if in future, Syed Saddiq ended up contesting for political seats on the Opposition’s ticket.