Salleh Said Keruak noted, people said the same about those who worked for the elder statesman when he was the PM.
He said people referred to Mahathir as ‘Hitler’ as he was a “megalomaniac leader” who accused his number two of sodomy in his bid to get rid of him.
Joseph Goebbels was one of Adolf Hitler’s close associates and most devoted follower, known also for his public speaking skills in Nazi Germany. In 1933, Goebbels became Hitler’s propaganda minister.
Mahathir, meanwhile, sacked his then deputy, Anwar Ibrahim in 1998 over allegations of sexual misconduct and corruption.
“It is poetic justice when what was said about Mahathir, he now says the same thing about Najib,” Salleh wrote in his blog today.
The communications and multimedia minister was responding to Mahathir’s blog post in which the elder statesman insinuated that the likes of Salleh, Umno Secretary-General Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, Barisan Nasional Strategic Communications Director Abdul Rahman Dahlan and Najib’s Press Secretary Tengku Sariffuddin Tengku Ahmad were “little Goebbels” who had little credibility.
Salleh also addressed head-on the former PM’s allegation that several bloggers who once supported him but who have since switched their allegiance to Najib, had been bought.
”Anyone who does not support Mahathir ‘makan dedak’ or has been bought. Is he saying all those who support him, do so also because they have been bought?” Salleh asked.
What needs to be noted, Salleh argued, was that a few of the bloggers Mahathir mentioned were once aligned to his son, Mukhriz and had worked very closely with him since 2006.
Therefore, Salleh argued, these bloggers knew of plans to make Mukhriz the PM yet chose to abandon him in 2015. Salleh added that this act of abandonment spoke volumes of the bloggers’ confidence level.
“Mahathir sounds like a very worried person. And he thinks if you do not support him then you are a crook or have been bought. Mahathir has always been a bad judge of character.”