A MALAY tsunami will shake up the next general election and there will be nothing Umno can do to stop it as Malays have lost faith in the party, Muhyiddin Yassin said.

The Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM) president said many were turning to the newly fledged party now that they realise Umno was more concerned with defending its leader than with honouring its struggles for race, religion and country.

Muhyiddin said this was making Umno nervous as it faced a wave of rejection even from its grassroots. 

The nervousness was apparent in the way Umno leaders had of late attacked PPBM chairman Dr Mahathir Mohamad, such as when Umno vice-president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi threatened to expose the former prime minister if he did not stop criticising Prime Minister Najib Razak, he said.

“Umno division meetings are being held now. This is the time when leaders use such conferences to raise the spirits of members and to attack their political enemies.

“The leaders are getting nervous. They know the people, the Malays themselves, are rejecting Umno. Every Bersatu programme, thousands of Malays attend and many of them used to support Umno,” said Muhyiddin  on his Facebook page today.

PPBM has been venturing into Umno strongholds, including Felda, which were previously unexplored territory to the opposition.

Thousands reportedly attended the events to listen to speeches by Dr Mahathir, Muhyiddin, PPBM deputy president Mukhriz Mahathir and other Pakatan Harapan leaders. Many also filled forms to join PPBM. 

“Just a few days ago we were in Malacca, an Umno stronghold after Johor. Tens of thousands were at our Hari Raya open house. It was something even I did not expect when we founded Bersatu,” Muhyiddin said.

The trust deficit was happening fast among the Malays, he said, and this would translate into a Malay tsunami in the next polls that could effect a change of government.

Muhyiddin said people had seen how Umno had become a party which fought for the interests of one man – its president – and no longer for the Malays who were facing hardships.

“We hear more Umno leaders condemning the US Department of Justice for filing civil suits over the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal than (Umno leaders) urging the government to abolish the goods and services tax, control the prices of goods, stop imposing new taxes, provide scholarships, create more jobs and to defend the national language.

“Because of this, many Umno grassroot members have joined Bersatu. They cannot trust Umno, which has betrayed its struggles for religion, race and nation,” he said.

Najib is linked to the 1MDB scandal as he had been accused of receiving billions of ringgit siphoned from the sovereign fund. It has been confirmed that he is the “Malaysian Official 1” referred to in the DoJ suits that claimed MO1 and his wife had benefitted from money allegedly stolen from 1MDB. 

Muhyiddin also expressed disappointment that leaders in Umno chose to overlook the problem and instead attack the opposition.

Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar recently told Dr Mahathir to resign from politics and Umno supreme council member and Muar Umno chief Razali Ibrahim had challenged Muhyiddin to contest the Muar parliamentary seat in the next polls.

Muhyiddin said Khairy disappointed him because the youth chief, with all the idealism of youth, should have called for Najib to resign instead of Mahathir. 

“There is nothing courageous about telling an opposition leader who has no authority to quit. Telling Najib to quit would show the true courage of youth. Does the Umno Youth leadership still have idealism or do they now go with ‘cash is king’?”

Muhyiddin said Zahid, Khairy and Razali were his friends when he was an Umno man, and he knew they were aware of the real problem in Umno.

He said some of them had spoken to him of the problem and urged him to do something as the party number two to correct the wrongs.

“Strangely, we have taken different paths. 

“I also knew of the big problem. I had no choice but to do my duty and speak the truth no matter how much it would hurt.

“But they kept quiet, covered up the truth, and then gave undivided support to the leader whom they knew was doing great damage to the country. They are still in Umno, keeping their positions and jobs.”

Muhyiddin, who had spoken out and used internal party channels to question how Najib had managed the 1MDB scandal, was fired from his positions as deputy prime minister, education minister and finally, as Umno deputy president.

“Perhaps God’s plan was better as I am no longer part of them. We are different because Dr Mahathir, Mukhriz and I have chosen to speak the truth for the good of the people and the country. 

“They have chosen to cover up the truth to protect one man. If they had been braver two years ago, I think Malaysia could had been saved earlier and the people would not be so burdened today.” – July 11, 2017.