THE relationship between parties in the opposition pact is not only a joke, but also a marriage of convenience, said Prime Minister Najib Razak today.

He said such relationships were formed based on Niccolo Machiavelli’s “the end justifies the means” philosophy.

“The opposition… it is almost laughable what they do. It’s a marriage of convenience. If we want to be kind to them, we say that.

“But, in reality, it’s Machiavellian politics. The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

Najib said he believed opposition leaders Lim Kit Siang, Anwar Ibrahim and Dr Mahathir Mohamad each had a different agenda, even though they were working in the same coalition, Pakatan Harapan (PH). 

“I believe Mahathir dreams one dream, Lim Kit Siang another, and Anwar yet another. Let us try to look into their minds.

“I’m sure all their dreams are different. You cannot have a country where the ideologies are different. They have their personal agendas. We cannot put this country at risk.” 

Lim and Anwar were detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) during the tenure of Dr Mahathir, who was prime minister for 22 years. 

Today, Dr Mahathir has teamed up with Anwar, who is in jail for sodomy charges that were first brought against him during the former prime minister’s tenure, to topple Najib in the next general election.

Putrajaya has repeatedly asserted that Lim is the real leader of the opposition, while Najib’s press secretary, Tengku Sarifuddin Tengku Ahmad, has called Dr Mahathir a DAP puppet instead of the top dog he believes himself to be as PH chairman. – September 24, 2017.