Dr M: Ministers differ over 1MDB

KUALA LUMPUR: The Cabin­et ­ministers­, said Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, seem clueless on how to deal with 1MDB.

"What is obvious is that the whole Cabinet seems unable to deal with this problem.

"Some (ministers) appear not to understand, others feel that it's none of their business, others are thinking that it is safer not to say anything," he told reporters yesterday.

Choosing his words carefully, the former prime minister said each minister has an own view and that he could not speak on their behalf.

It was reported that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak told his Cabinet last week that they should resign if they did not take his side on the 1MDB issue.

None of the ministers present did so. Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin did not attend the meeting as he was out of the country at the time.

Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz later said that it was not an ultimatum.

He said Najib was speaking in a "by-the-way" manner.

Muhyiddin had previously called for the 1MDB board to be sacked and for the police to probe the group.

When asked if the ultimatum was seen as a move to silence the Cabinet, Dr Mahathir said ministers who did not agree with his policies when he was in power, were removed.

"During my time, the ministers who could not agree with my ­policies, I removed them and then I replaced them.

"But when they agreed again with my policies, I take them back."

He said he welcomed back those who supported Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah's attempt against his rule in 1987.

On a claim by former editor Datuk Abdul Kadir Jasin that Najib would not step down because of his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Dr Mahathir said that was just Kadir’s opinion.

"I must admit that many people say the same thing to me," he said, adding that he did not have an opinion on the matter.