Why Malaysian PM Najib Razak is playing the race card

In attempt to consolidate power, Malaysian leader uses party assembly to paint the opposition – and his former mentor Mahathir – as colluding to end Malay dominance

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United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party delegates gather at the opening ceremony of the party’s General Assembly in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Thursday. Photo: AP

Published: 12:00pm, 3 Dec 2016Updated: 10:20pm, 6 Jul 2017

After a fractious year triggered by the 1MDB scandal, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak this week moved to consolidate his power within Umno by turning his guns on his mentor-turned-nemesis and stoking racial sentiments among the rank and file.

At the Umno (United Malays National Organisation) yearly assembly this week, Najib attempted to show he still had the party’s backing, despite being at the centre of the worldwide graft probe into 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and a very public exodus of party leaders, which included former president Mahathir Mohamad.

During his speech, Najib painted the enemy. He described the next election campaign as an “existential battle” between his pro-Malay party and its allies, and an opposition led by the Democratic Action Party (DAP) – which he characterised as an anti-Muslim and anti-Malay Chinese dominated party. And in an effort to erode any remaining loyalty towards Mahathir, Najib said the former prime minister had been colluding with the DAP and other opposition parties to end Umno and Malay dominance.

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir addresses a crowd of thousands of protesters during a rally in Kuala Lumpur in November. Photo: EPA

Mahathir and former deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin exited Umno in 2015 after both openly criticised Najib’s handling of the 1MDB affair and questioned a US$681 million (HK$5.2 billion) deposit into the Prime Minister’s personal bank account. Najib maintains that he did nothing wrong and the deposit was a donation from a Saudi prince.

Mahathir, a former Umno president, was once Najib’s mentor. Muhyiddin, meanwhile, was Najib’s deputy through his rise to the premiership in 2008 until 2015. Since leaving Umno, the pair have formed the Malaysian United Indigenous Party (PPBM) and have flagged a potential electoral pact with the DAP and the Opposition Pakatan Harapan coalition, which pits them against Umno and its National Front allies in the next general election. While not due until mid-2018, the next general election could be called as early as next year.