Former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad has allied with several leaders from Perikatan Nasional to jointly oppose the unity government, seen as the 'common enemy' of the Malays.
After attending the 'Malay Dignity and Power' roundtable conference on Thursday (12th), Mahathir stated in a press conference that Malays have become targets of government investigation, with many being charged in court.
'Many outspoken Malays claim they are oppressed by the government, and face threats of being charged in court, imprisoned, caned, and fined.'
'Malays are facing the same problems, so we need to unite.'
According to a video uploaded on TikTok, Mahathir indicated that not all Malays are in the same political party, but they are closer due to these issues.
Mahathir further stated that three solutions were concluded after the meeting: if not addressed, Malays' land rights would disappear, they agree on a common enemy, thus facing the problem together, and they agree to unite Malays to prevent erosion of power.
Participants of the roundtable included former Prime Minister and Perikatan Nasional chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, former UMNO secretary-general Tan Sri Annuar Musa, and PAS vice president Datuk Idris Ahmad, among others.
Moreover, in response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry's earlier 217-page report on the 'Sovereignty Issues of Pedra Branca, Middle Rocks and South Ledge', it was recommended that criminal action be taken against Mahathir for withdrawing the review application on the International Court's decision to award Pedra Branca to Singapore.
However, Mahathir refuted this, stating that the withdrawal of the appeal was a collective decision by the Cabinet in 2018, and the current Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's wife, Datuk Seri Wan Azizah, was the Deputy Prime Minister at that time.
In response to Mahathir's claim, three leaders of the Pakatan Harapan, namely the current PKR advisory board chairman Wan Azizah, the then Defense Minister and Amanah president Datuk Seri Mohamad Sabu, and the then Transport Minister and DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook, issued a joint statement on Thursday (December 12th) unanimously refuting and clarifying that they did not participate in that decision.
Regarding this matter, Anwar stated that he would leave it to the Members of Parliament for discussion.