Zaid Ibrahim retracts Daim statement, says will stop writing and quit politics for good

PETALING JAYA: Datuk Zaid Ibrahim has retracted his statement about Tun Daim Zainuddin’s involvement with the Pakatan Harapan government and the reference to his role in making important decisions.

The former law minister said that he regretted his “unfair and unjustified remarks” and that he apologised to both Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Daim for the anguish his writing caused them.

Zaid said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng had called him and said that his statement was uncalled for as it was not true and not based on facts.

“He suggested that I make a retraction.

"Then my closest friends asked why I was picking unnecessary fights with so many people. Even my family members seemed unhappy.

“They told me we would no longer have food on the table if I continued giving opinions about powerful people in the country,” he said in a statement that was posted on Free Malaysia Today.

Zaid said that the world came crashing down on him after he suggested in a tweet and a blog posting that Daim and his billionaire friends were making key decisions for the Pakatan Harapan government.

“In all my years of writing, I have taken great pains to ensure the accuracy of the information I received, but this one is obviously faulty and has crossed the line of responsible writing.