KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak has described Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s advice as ‘misplaced’, in urging Malaysians to take to the streets should the prime minister declare an emergency to avoid calling for the 14th General Election (GE14).
The Communications and Multimedia Minister said Datuk Seri Najib Razak was not a dictator to resort to such a move and as such, he would never declare an emergency just to stay in power, and avoid calling for GE14.
“Even more important, while Mahathir wanted to transfer the power of declaring an emergency from the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to the Prime Minister in 1983, but failed, Najib is not a dictator who would do such a thing,” he said in his latest blog post at sskeruak.blogspot.my last night.
Furthermore, he said the reason why Dr Mahathir had said so was because the former prime minister was assuming that Pakatan Harapan would emerge victorious in GE14.
“Has it not occurred to Mahathir that Barisan Nasional, and not Pakatan Harapan, is going to win GE14? So, why the need to declare an emergency for Najib to stay in power by avoiding GE14?,” he asked.
Salleh said according to Universiti Teknologi MARA law lecturer Prof Emeritus Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi, ’Najib cannot declare an emergency as he can only advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to do so, and His Majesty need not take this advice’. -- Bernama