PAKATAN Harapan will reduce its chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s appearances in its roadshows and ceramah to safeguard his health, said Mohamad Sabu.

PH will also ensure events involving the 92-year-old Dr Mahathir end earlier.

Mohamad, who is PH’s communication and mobilisation committee chairman, said previously, its ceramah and gatherings ended at midnight but they will now end at 11pm.

“This is among the steps we have taken to safeguard our chairman’s health,” said Mohamad, who is also Amanah president.

Dr Mahathir was admitted to the National Heart Institute (IJN) last month because of a chest infection and fever.

The founder and president of the youngest opposition party Bersatu also had to cancel three PH campaign events in Bentong and a ceramah in a Felda settlement.

He showed that he was still feeling under the weather when he turned up for a day-long programme in Kelantan on Saturday wearing a scarf around the neck to keep the cold out.

“Apart from a PH roadshow that night, Dr Mahathir was also involved in three other programmes in the evening. It was too taxing for him,” said Mohamad, who is popularly known as Mat Sabu.

It was to be followed by Dr Mahathir’s appearance at another event in Penang to celebrate 10 years of Pakatan rule in the northern state.

“In Penang on Sunday, Dr Mahathir could not attend because soon after he was done in Kelantan, he went home. He arrived home late and was too tired and not well,” said Mat Sabu.

The roadshows are part of PH’s attempt to mobilise support for the opposition.

The former prime minister began hitting the road in 2016, visiting urban and rural areas, urging voters to throw out the current administration at the next polls.

Dr Mahathir was also involved in PH’s nationwide roadshow, Sayangi Malaysia, Hapus Kleptokrasi (Love Malaysia, End kleptocracy) to explain the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal to the people. The roadshow began in October 2016 and ended in March 2017 with a huge rally in Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

There will be more roadshows for Dr Mahathir as the 14 general election looms. He is expected to be at a ceramah in Felda Gugusan Besout 1 in Tanjung Malim, Perak, next week.

Last week, Umno veteran Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah expressed worry over Dr Mahathir’s health and feared that GE14 will take a toll on the PH prime minister candidate.

The Gua Musang MP said PH does not have many leaders and is too dependent on the former prime minister to gain votes.

“He was recently hospitalised. We don’t want his health to be affected, as this campaign will be more intense once it is in full swing,” Razaleigh said. – March 14, 2018.