KOTA KINABALU: Former Sabah chief minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak has cautioned against the prospect of a rerun of the political crisis of 2015 if the current unity government is not careful of former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamd’s political machinations.
In politics, he said age and ambition have no limits.
“Do not underestimate the will of an old man. When dealing with an adversary, it is not only his actions but also his intentions that have to be watched, since if one does not act first, one will suffer first.
“Tun Mahathir could again become Prime Minister if all his enemies regard this as impossible and remain off guard,” he said in his latest Facebook posting.
The former federal minister said that “Tun Mahathir is a very smart politician; he is smarter than most of us.”
“He (Mahathir) wants to have a more effective influence over the political domain so that he can undermine the Prime Minister’s control and influence. He is a master at this kind of game. I would salute him for that,” he added.
According to Salleh, Tun Mahathir is thinking, and his corresponding move might eventually lead to a political crisis that may be bigger than the 2015 political crisis faced by Najib (Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak).
“PAS will not back him up unless they truly believe in Tun Mahathir’s political abilities.
“PAS surely believed that Tun Mahathir could succeed where Tan Sri Muhyiddin had failed, which was to return to Putra Jaya,” he said.
Salleh believed that the recent move made by Mahathir to be the advisor for SG4, which effectively made himself the de facto leader of Perikatan Nasional, was merely the first of many bigger moves to come.
“Even though the move to make Tun Mahathir the de facto leader of Perikatan National is indeed an important move, such moves would only be significant and meaningful if Tun Mahathir could make his way into Parliament and then become the Leader of the Opposition.
“He would have correctly used the appointment as the economic advisor to SG4 to convince all PAS members of his sincerity,” he said.
