CARETAKER Prime Minister Najib Razak said Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s decision to team up with his former nemesis, Anwar Ibrahim, showed that the Pakatan Harapan chairman lacked principles and integrity.

In a video taken during a recent ceramah, Najib said Dr Mahathir used to criticise Anwar “with words he himself dared not utter”, but despite that had reunited with him recently.

“We cannot have people like this. We need to have principles in politics,” Najib said in the video uploaded on his Twitter account.

“It does not matter if (we) win or lose, as long as we have integrity,” he said.

Najib said Dr Mahathir’s about-turn on Anwar smacked of dishonesty.

“I cannot do it. He can. It’s okay, he can do that, but I will stick to our fight,” Najib said.

On September 5, 2016, Dr Mahathir shook hands with Anwar at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

Anwar was there to attend the hearing of his application to temporarily suspend the National Security Council Act 2015. The act marked the beginning of their reconciliation.

Both men had been rivals since Dr Mahathir sacked Anwar as his deputy prime minister on September 2, 1998.

Najib, who was appointed prime minister in April 2009, has been fending off allegations that he played a role in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) controversy which saw the state-owned investment firm suffer losses amounting to billions of dollars.

The scandal is currently being investigated in several other countries over claims that several high-ranking officials used 1MDB to siphon off funds.

Najib has denied any role in the scandal, and has been cleared by the Malaysian attorney-general of any wrongdoing. – April 28, 2018.