PUTRAJAYA, April 3 – The general election is a contest among political parties and not among individuals because only the winning party can form the government, said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Expressing his confidence that the Barisan Nasional (BN) would win the 13th general election with a two-thirds majority, he said the coalition has regained the support of the people, including the Chinese.
Speaking to reporters here today, he urged BN members and supporters to vote for candidates from the coalition irrespective from which party they were from. Asked whether he would take up DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang’s challenge to contest in the Gelang Patah parliamentary constituency, Dr Mahathir said he did not want to for he had retired from politics and urged Lim to follow suit.
“He should retire and make way for young people because he has been active in politics since 1964. I had given the opportunity to young people when I resigned (as prime minister) in 2003,” he added.
Earlier, Dr Mahathir received a courtesy call from former PAS lifelong member Zainon Ismail, who had once planned to kill him in 1988 due to his obsession with the ‘Amanat (message) Haji Hadi’ which denounced Umno as infidel. Present were representatives of several Muslim non-governmental organisations from Kelantan, including Persatuan Minda Pondok and Ikatan Cendekiawan Islam Kelantan, which used to be staunch PAS supporters.
BERNAMA
