Political crisis in Terengganu should have been handled diplomatically - Mahathir

Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said if Umno leaders used a rough approach, it would only invite problems like former Terengganu menteri besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Said's reaction of quitting the party.

"If we had acted harshly, it would not be a problem for him (Ahmad) to leave Umno. It (situation) is not like in some states like Johor, where Umno is already in the members' blood. In Kelantan, is is difficult for party members to quit PAS or Umno as they have strong faith in their party.

"Both leaders (at the federal and state levels) must accept the fact that mistakes had been made by both sides," he told reporters after receiving an honorary doctorate in political development from Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, here, Wednesday.

Also present at the ceremony was Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia, Datuk Seri Zahrain Mohamed Hashim.

Terengganu became the focus of attention of late when Ahmad, who is also Kijal assemblyman, was reported to have quit Umno after he resigned as menteri besar on Monday following mounting pressure for him to step down.

Following this, Ajil assemblyman Ghazali Taib and Bukit Besi assemblyman Roslee Daud were also reported to have left Umno to become independents.

Roslee, however, reportedly returned to Umno on Tuesday.

Today, Ahmad withdrew his decision to quit Umno and become an independent elected representative after a discussion with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in the afternoon.

Ghazali also withdrew his earlier quit decision.

Dr Mahathir said in Terengganu, it was not a big issue for Umno leaders to quit the party compared to those in other states, because "in Terengganu, crossing over to another party is normal and they like to try. They would try to do it in Umno, then in Pas and in Umno again.

"It's their way, so we have to be careful as they can easily switch (party). It's their character."

Dr Mahathir, who is also former Umno president, said the political crisis in Terengganu arose because of the party's weakness.

"Umno is weak now. The feeling of (party members) is that it is focusing less on the problems of the Malay community but more attention being paid on opposition parties, the Chinese community and so on.

"Hence, there is dissatisfaction among the Malays. They support (Umno) not because of the leadership but because they dislike the opposition," he said.

Dr Mahathir said the Umno top leadership needed to understand the sentiments of the party supporters at the grassroot level to ensure continued support for the party, especially in facing the next general election.

He stressed that Umno leaders should not listen totally to the individuals around them, but should instead also listen to the grouses of members who always supported the party.

"These leaders must know the feelings of the grassroots. Don't just rely on people who are close to you.

"Generally, they (grassroots) are not satisfied with the way the administration policies are implemented but they don't know how to use the channels (to voice out their grievances) except through the general election," he said.

Dr Mahathir also noted that Umno had in many instances, made the same mistakes, but not many of its party leaders were brave enough to correct the mistakes, making the top leaders felt that whatever they did received support.