Dr Mahathir Mohamad responded with laughter when asked if he would become a DAP member in the event he could not regain control of Bersatu.
“I don’t think I would join the DAP. As you know, they are making DAP the scapegoat. They blame DAP for controlling the government so as to win over Malay support for them.
“But if I join the DAP, which is predominantly Chinese, I don’t think that would be well accepted by the people,” he said.
Regardless of what transpires, Mahathir said he would continue to represent the Malay segment of the population.
“I have always represented the Malay segment of the population, it has always been from the very beginning that way and I think I will continue to do that one way or another, whether it is through joining another party or being independent or forming another party.
“These are options that I don’t think I need to make at the moment,” he added.
We have a problem with Malaysian Chinese
Meanwhile, Mahathir also addressed the wealth disparity between the races in Malaysia when quizzed on his stand to push back against Chinese influence in Malaysia.
“We have no problem with China’s Chinese, but we have a problem with Malaysian Chinese. [Laughs] They have very dynamic people, they have become extremely rich in Malaysia and they own practically all the towns in Malaysia. This is not healthy.
“You know, even if there is a single race, the disparities between rich and poor have led to revolutions, to violence and all that. We find that in Malaysia, the disparity between town and country is amplified by the disparity between the Chinese in the towns and the Malays in the rural areas. We need to correct that.
“I think many Chinese accept that, but, of course, some who lose out on a certain project that they want may not feel happy about that.
“But I would like to point out to everybody that as a multi-racial country, Malaysia is much more stable, much more peaceful than many other multi-racial countries. Even by comparison with the United States [and its] problem with the blacks,” he added.
Quizzed on Muhyiddin’s popularity amongst the Malays, Mahathir claimed that the people are now seeing the prime minister’s true colours.
“Well, initially he was quite popular because he says that he is going to form a Malay Muslim government. Of course, the Malays like that. And then he says that DAP will destroy the Malays, so we need to bring down DAP.
“A lot of Malays believe what he says. But now they find that he is worse than the (former premier) Najib (Abdul Razak) government in terms of administration.
“He tends to do things on his own without any authority, any legal standing. So, people now are beginning to see the true Muhyiddin,” he added.
He said he has yet to decide if the best platform for him would be to remain independent or to form yet another political party.
“These are options that I don’t think I need to make at the moment.”