Umno Supreme Council member Puad Zarkashi sarcastically described Fadhli’s decision to reference Mao as a “good” one.
“So, it turns out that using communist leaders’ ideas is allowed. PAS can do it but others can’t – they get accused of being communists.
“It’s just like money politics. If others do it, it’s corruption. But if PAS does it, it’s ‘charity’,” Puad said in a Facebook post.
PAS mouthpiece HarakahDaily had reported Fadhli’s comments on the loss by PN’s Haizan Jaafar in the Mahkota by-election last week.
Looking at the size of Barisan Nasional’s victory, with a 20,648-vote majority, Fadhli found some inspiration in the words of the former Chinese communist leader.
The Pasir Mas MP quoted Mao’s famous line: “We must have faith in the masses and we must have faith in the party.”
“These are two cardinal principles. If we doubt these principles, we will accomplish nothing,” Fadhli said.
Mao made this statement at a meeting of the Communist Party of China in 1949, shortly after the establishment of the republic. It was part of his broader efforts to consolidate power and set the ideological direction for the new government.
Prior to the by-election, Johor PN filed a police report against Puad after claiming he would spread communist ideology among state Umno members and the state legislative assembly, where Puad is the speaker, after a trip to China.
Johor Bersatu chairman Dr Sahruddin Jamal told reporters the police report was based on Puad’s recent Facebook posts, including one in which he visited the Beijing Municipal Party Committee School.
Puad has since brushed off these claims, saying that the visit, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China, was aimed at learning about China’s modernisation efforts and technological advancements.
Fadhli, when asked to comment after attending an event in Bangi, refused to respond.
“I don’t need to respond to Puad’s cynical remarks. I wasn’t the one who visited a communist school. I don’t view its principles positively,” he said.