Has Mahathir abandoned Azmin Ali?

From NST:

Not my business, says Dr M
By Nur Aqidah Azizi - July 19, 2019 @ 10:27pm

Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the absence of Mohamed Azmin is none of his business

NSTP/Iqmal Haqim Rosman 

PORT DICKSON: With his presence highly anticipated, Economic Affairs Minister and PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali has not been spotted at the party's retreat, here, tonight.

Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the absence of Mohamed Azmin is none of his business.

When asked on Mohamed Azmin's no show at the program held at the Lexis Hibiscus Hotel, here, Dr Mahathir smiled and said: "That's his business, not my business."

Mohamed Azmin's presence is very much anticipated at the program, which gathers the party's central leadership members in its first retreat since Pakatan Harapan (PH) took over the government a year ago.

This following the widening rift in the party following the sex video issue implicating Mohamed Azmin, which saw PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim making remarks that his deputy should resign from his Cabinet post should the sex clips turn out to be true.

The remark was followed by criticism from 28 fellow party leaders, who signed a joint statement labelling Anwar's statement as inappropriate and based on speculative assertions and urged him to stop making divisive statements.

When further asked on the statement made by Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Datuk Seri Abdul Hamid Bador who had revealed that the sex video allegedly implicating a minister was the work of a group masterminded by “a leader of a political party”, Dr Mahathir refused to comment.

"No comment," he said.

From what I read above, it might look like the Old Man has abandoned Azmin Ali, but I tend to rush into premature conclusions. Yes, there have been lots of confusion, bemusement on the current Anwar-Azmin stoush*, so what's the real story?

* someone asked me what's 'stoush' - it's informal Aussie slang for a 'brawl, fight'

My old matey Robert Lip Seng Kee (PKR long-time stalwart) from yonder blogging days left an interesting comment on his Facebook, as follow:

(I've changed 'Bersatu' into 'Pribumi' as we recognise the latter better, wakakaka)

Here's my final analysis on Azmingate ...

The people behind it are not in Keadilan but Bersatu Pribumi. Not implicating TDM but there are enough ambitious people in Bersatu Pribumi who have a deeply vested interest in breaking down Keadilan's influence.

Many of us in the party have a lot of antipathy against Azmin and his supporters (i.e. the Kartel) for quite a few years, and yet we have only resorted to methods within the parameters of the party's framework to attempt to loosen his grip on power (i.e. challenging him in party elections, et al). There was no need to resort to a tactic that could so easily backfire given the context of the circumstances of our party's founding.

OTOH, a vast majority of Bersatu's Pribumi's members have never been really involved in the political reform movement. I know a handful who have so this is not a blanket tarring. Many saw Bersatu Pribumi as a convenient platform to shift their allegiances to when the wind started blowing the other direction. Ideologically they have not shifted.

Folks in Keadilan, DAP, and Amanah have cut their teeth in the frontlines for decades, often paying very high prices for it.

It wasn't too long ago that I was resigned to seeing our political landscape as being doomed to being stratified along ethnic and religious identity - with the Malays and Muslims on one side and the non-Muslims on the other.

Whether you like it or not, it was Anwar who was the catalyst in bringing together the various ethnic communities in Malaysia unto a single platform to oppose the hegemony of Barisan Nasional.

A change is possible ... with all its messiness. But we got to stay steady on the path and be vigilant of reactionary elements even within the ruling coalition.

Well said Bob. Sometimes I might have not agreed with you but I have always admired you. I agree with your analysis above.

And one more from Facebook, wakakaka:

Ta'cukup - Police perlu 110% probability

wakakaka

the highest police standard possible