Mahathir says his new party is named Pejuang
Former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad said his new Malay-based party will be called Pejuang, which means warrior or fighter in Bahasa Malaysia.
He announced the name of the brand new party on his popular blog page Chedet on Wednesday with a Bahasa Malaysia poem, which claimed that the party that he co-founded in 2016, Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), was hijacked to save kleptocrats, reports The Star. "
Corruption destroys our race and corruption destroys the Malays. If you would like positions and money, choose another party."If you wish to redeem your dignity and defend our rights, choose our party, choose Pejuang, " said Tun Dr Mahathir, who turned 95 just last month.
Bersatu was among the four parties in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition that unexpectedly won federal power in the May 2018 general election.But PH was toppled after barely 22 months in office, with defections by most lawmakers in Bersatu, who were joined by another band of MPs from Parti Keadilan Rakyat.
The defectors formed the Perikatan Nasional (PN) ruling alliance with Umno - that was ousted from power in 2018 because of anger over corruption allegations involving its party leaders, including former prime minister Najib Razak. Other factions that joined PN were Parti Islam SeMalaysia and Gabungan Parti Sarawak.
Najib was found guilty on July 28 on 12 counts of corruption involving SRC International, a unit of state fund 1MDB. He has appealed against his 12-year conviction and fine of RM210 million (S$68.8 million). It wasn't clear on Dr Mahathir's blog page whether Pejuang may be the full or partial name of his party.
He announced the formation of the new Malay-based party following a High Court's decision to strike out a suit by him and others over the nullification of their Bersatu memberships last Friday.
The new party will include at least five former Bersatu MPs, including himself.Dr Mahathir's announcement of his new party last Friday triggered a wave of resignations from Bersatu leaders across several party divisions.
