KUALA LUMPUR: Umno Youth chief, Khairy Jamaluddin went on the offensive against Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and told delegates at the wing’s meeting today, not to trapped in "misplaced nostalgia".
He said Umno leaders could only now speak out against Dr Mahathir's alleged transgressions during his time in power, due to the freedom of speech accorded today.
"Some may ask, why were we quiet then? Why did we not speak out?
"It’s simple, there was never any freedom of speech before, be it outside or inside the party."
The Youth and Sports Minister listed several actions allegedly taken by Dr Mahathir back then against his detractors.
"(Back then), papers that were critical were shut down. Political critics were silenced and put in jail under Ops Lalang. Courts were controlled to the point that a Chief Justice (Lord President) was removed without strong basis. Basic legal rights denied
– the ISA (now-defunct Internal Security Act) used as a weapon – to detain individuals considered political threats without trial.
"Do not forget, his own (then) Deputy Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) suffered a black eye when he was punched. PKR, take note."
Khairy also reminded delegates in his speech at the Umno Youth meeting 2017, here, that students were also not allowed to express their opinions.
"The AUKU (Universities and University Colleges Act 1971) became a barrier that prevented undergraduates from speaking out.
"Within the party, the government, the nation, there existed a culture of fear. Iron fist. Yet, now he speaks as though he was chaste, and that we are the cruel dictators."
Khairy said in Dr Mahathir's 22-years) reign as prime minister, his "track record was not spotless".
Going into the former premier’s past controversies that remain contentious until today, Khairy said the elder politician had made a string of losses totaling billions of ringgit, apart from measures to bailout failures.
"That is why, the old records have to be reviewed. There are those who’ve asked why we’re reopening stories from the past.
"My answer is simple, the past had to be studied and understood so that simplistic conclusions aren’t made by young voters. So young voters don’t make illogical deductions that – apparently the old days were better than now – because it was Dr Mahathir’s era then and Najib’s now, therefore Dr Mahathir is better than Najib, therefore we’ll vote for Dr Mahathir’s party.
"We should dissect illogical reasoning of this nature, and then destroy it."
Khairy said for example, Dr Mahathir’s legacy might not be chock full of success stories, as the decisions made back then had led to sets of issues for future generation.
"Unfortunately, young people of today are imbued with misplaced nostalgia to the point that they believe that our country was better then than it is now.
"They might be too young to remember how unequal development was in those days.
“It is true that the towering Petronas skyscrapers are his legacy, as well as the Sepang International Circuit and Putrajaya.
"But don’t forget, most of the development was only focussed in the Klang Valley. What about other areas?
“In his time, we did not see projects like the economic corridors in Iskandar, in the North, East Coast, Sabah and Sarawak. The Vision Valley in Negeri Sembilan.
"What’s the biggest development in the East Coast? What definitely happened and I will never forget, was that the East Coast Highway in Terengganu was cancelled once Barisan Nasional lost there in 1999."