He said this enthusiastic reception took place when he led Umno Youth’s “Aman Malaysia” humanitarian mission to the two countries.
“They chanted ‘welcome home’,” said Mukhriz, the second witness in a defamation suit brought by Dr Mahathir Mohamad against deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi over Zahid’s alleged use of the name “Kutty” to refer to the former prime minister.
Mukhriz, now president of Pejuang, was testifying under cross-examination by Zahid’s counsel, Shahrul Fazli Kamaruzman, regarding his father’s ancestry.
He said, however, his family members had treated the matter as a joke when he narrated his experience to them.
Mukhriz said many people had written about his father’s lineage without being able to substantiate what they say with proof.
At this juncture, Shahrul told judicial commissioner Gan Techiong that Mahathir had admitted in his statement of claim that his roots could be traced to Kerala in south India.
In his statement of claim, Mahathir alleged that Zahid defamed him through the derogatory use of the name “Kutty” at an Umno divisional meeting in Kelana Jaya on July 30, 2017.
He claims the statement was meant to imply that he was not born a Malay or Muslim, and that his original name was Mahathir, son of Iskandar Kutty.
In his defence, Zahid said that name referred to an individual based on information contained in a copy of an old identity card.
Mukhriz said his father was known only as “Mahathir bin Mohamad” and not “Mahathir bin Mohamad Iskandar”.
He said Zahid’s statement about Mahathir’s origins had a political impact as Bersatu, the party he co-founded with his father in 2016, did not perform well in many of the 52 seats it contested at the 2018 general election.
“We were given close to a quarter of the 222 seats to contest in Malay majority constituencies but only won 13,” he said when re-examined by lawyer Mior Nor Haidir Suhaimi.
In the 2018 general election, Mahathir won in Langkawi while Mukhriz was elected MP for Jerlun.
“We were expecting to win in at least 40 seats so that Bersatu’s position in Pakatan Harapan would have an impact,” he said.
Mukhriz said Mahathir was less effective during his second stint as prime minister between May 2018 and February 2020 as Bersatu had to contend with Umno for the support of the Malays.
Earlier, in his witness statement, Mukhriz said Zahid’s statements about Mahathir were unsubstantiated, false and defamatory.
He said Zahid’s allegations were rebutted by Dt Key Marzuki, a follower on Mukhriz’s Facebook page, “Mukhriz Mahathir Fan Club”.
The plaintiff closed his case today.
The trial was adjourned to May 14 next year with Zahid, the only witness for the defendant, to take the stand.