Umno's persecution claim backfires, providing opposition with GE weapon

KUALA LUMPUR – A warning by Umno president Zahid Hamidi that more Barisan Nasional (BN) leaders will be charged with graft if it loses the upcoming general election has become a weapon for the opposition even before official campaigning begins.

It is warning Malaysians not to vote for the Umno-led bloc, saying that BN leaders want to win thepolls to protect themselves from court cases.

However, Zahid claimed that the allegation had been spun by his rivals. He said that he had meant BN leaders would be politically persecuted and that it was not an admission of corruption.

At a Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) assembly on Monday, the Umno president had described the upcoming election as “the mother of all general elections” and said many other BN leaders would be slapped with criminal charges if Umno loses.

He named his deputy president Mohamad Hassan, Umno minister Hishammuddin Hussein, MIC president S.A. Vigneswaran and deputy president M. Saravanan, as well as Malaysian Chinese Association president Wee Ka Siong, as the audience laughed.

A video of his comments has gone viral, prompting criticisms from opponents and the clarification from Zahid.

Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad on Tuesday said that disgraced ex-PM Najib Razak would be freed from jail if Umno wins the general election.

The prosecution of Zahid, who is facing 47 graft charges, will also be dropped, warned Tun Dr Mahathir.

Najib began a 12-year jail term in August after being convicted in the first of several cases linked to the misappropriation of billions of dollars from state fund 1MDB.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Monday announced the dissolution of Parliament, following intense pressure from factions in Umno linked to Zahid, Najib and others charged with graft.

Democratic Action Party lawmaker Lim Kit Siang said on Friday that Zahid had made “a very weak and feeble excuse which could not explain his brutally frank admissions.”

He added that even the Perlis Mufti Mohd Asri Zain was “stunned that Umno and BN’s objective in the coming polls is to make Malaysia a ‘haven for corruption’.”

Dr Mohd Asri tweeted on Thursday: “Stunned after hearing how a politician can openly admit that their intention to win the general election is to avoid corruption charges against them in court. If that happens, this country will become a haven for corruption.”

Political observer and former diplomat Dennis Ignatius wrote on his blog: “With dozens of serious criminal charges hanging over him like the sword of Damocles, he knows that his only hope of survival now is a change of government, a government under his control.”

He added: “What he is demanding is that the citizens sacrifice their safety and well-being during the monsoon season just to save him from judgment day.”

The general election is widely expected to be held in November, near the start of the annual monsoon season which brings widespread floods.