Dr Mahathir: I am still Bersatu chairman and I will bring a motion to sack Muhyiddin at next party meeting

PETALING JAYA, May 29 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad claims that he is still the Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) chairman and plans to bring a motion to sack Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin at a party meeting in the near future.

“We want to sack him but we have to call for an MPT (supreme council meeting),” he said during a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya this afternoon.

However, he cannot meet anyone now as he is in quarantine after coming into contact with a Covid-19 patient at a meeting.”

Dr Mahathir said Muhyiddin has done several “wrong things” in the party, including appointing and ordering several party members to exceed their powers, namely organising secretary Muhammad Suhaimi Yahya, and appointing Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin as the party secretary general.

“There is no setiausaha kerja (organising secretary) post and he has no powers whatsoever, only susun meja (arranging tables).

“The secretary-general of the party is still Datuk Marzuki Yahya and Muhyiddin was supposed to discuss matters with me but never did,” he alleged.

Dr Mahathir added that Hamzah, who joined Bersatu in 2019 from Umno, was not supposed to be given any position in the party.

“The party made the decision that former Umno members who wanted to join the party should undergo the process of leaving Umno and being independent for a while, then apply and if we agree, they will become a normal party member without any position.

“So why was he appointed as secretary-general by Muhyiddin?” he said.

Dr Mahathir arrived at the party’s headquarters in Petaling Jaya at 2.30pm today, daring the party’s officials to personally tell him that he has been expelled as a member.

However, both Hamzah and Suhaimi were not around and the former’s press conference was then changed to the Sofitel hotel nearby, before both suddenly changed their minds and held the event on the ninth floor of Bersatu headquarters along with information chief Mohd Radzi Md Jidin and supreme council member Datuk Seri Rina Harun.

Dr Mahathir also said that he has appointed Kelantan Bersatu deputy chief Datuk Sazmi Miah as the new party’s organising secretary replacing Suhaimi.

He then lambasted the decision to remove him, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, Datuk Amiruddin Hamzah, Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman and Maszlee Malik yesterday, saying that there was nothing in the party constitution to allow that.

He said that clause 10.2.2 and 10.2.3 cannot be used as the grounds to sack them as they had done nothing wrong.

“Well, there is no provision in the constitution regarding where I sit (in Parliament). I have done nothing against the constitution so that does not mean I have left the party. I can sit anywhere in Parliament.

“They (other MPs) can sit anywhere but one of our members sits on the government side even though he does not support them.

“Where you sit is not a cause for sacking,” he said.