New book on Pakatan government is the result of Dr Mahathir’s ‘half-truths and untruths’

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — DAP Chairman Lim Guan Eng today launched the book Shattered hopes to the failed Pakatan Harapan (PH) government as evidence of the possible “senility” of former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad.

Lim claimed that Romen Bose’s book contained half-truths and untruths by Dr Mahathir to portray him in a favourable light, and said he wanted to “set the record straight” regarding the former prime minister’s portrayal of the DAP.

He said that while Dr Mahathir got off to a good start after PH won the 2018 general election, it quickly began blocking attempts to implement its campaign promises.

“Mahathir openly threatened to fire me three times before Cabinet meetings. He was openly angry because I stubbornly insisted on reducing the toll on the North-South Expressway by 18 percent despite his strong objections,” Lim said in a statement.

“He also opposed my conducting public tenders for public procurement and allocating development aid to our MPs. Despite his opposition, I managed to persuade a majority of Cabinet members to agree to these proposals, much to his chagrin.”

Lim said Dr Mahathir was both angry and surprised that DAP did not agree with the DAP’s plan to ban UMNO, which Lim said violated the basic human right to freedom of association.

He said the plan to ban UMNO was ultimately thwarted after he secured the support of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Dr Mahathir was also angry with Tony Pua, then DAP Damansara MP and Lim’s political secretary, and tried unsuccessfully to have the latter sacked, Lim said.

The book by Bose, a former political adviser to former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, was published earlier this year and claims to depict “the promise, reality and collapse of the Pakatan Rakyat and Perikatan Nasional governments in the new Malaysia”.