‘The people are not stupid, they have not forgotten’ - Amir Abdul Hadi hits back at PH supporters after Melaka defeat
The Mandiri executive director says voters remember the Zahid Hamidi DNAA, PH’s previous cooperation with BN, the handling of Azam Baki and allegations surrounding a corporate mafia.
SHAH ALAM — Mandiri executive director Amir Hariri Abdul Hadi has hit back at Pakatan Harapan (PH) supporters who criticised Melaka voters following the coalition’s crushing defeat in the state election, saying the people are neither stupid nor forgetful.
In a Facebook post published the morning after the election results, Amir questioned why some PH supporters were blaming voters for backing the Barisan Nasional-Perikatan Nasional (BN-PN) alliance, with some allegedly accusing them of being indifferent to corruption and even describing them as stupid.
Amir, the former Muda secretary-general, said the electorate had not forgotten the controversies and political decisions involving Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s administration and its allies.
His remarks came after PH suffered another major setback at the state level, marking a hat-trick of electoral defeats under Anwar’s leadership, despite BN being its partner in the Federal Government but a political rival in Melaka.
“People are not stupid. In fact, people do not forget,” he wrote.
Amir then listed several issues he said PH supporters appeared to have overlooked, beginning with the 47 corruption charges against Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, which were granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA).
He questioned who had previously defended Zahid, pointing out that some of the same individuals were now criticising voters over their political choices.
He also challenged claims that the DNAA was solely a court decision, highlighting that the application was made by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), which operates under the Prime Minister’s Department.
“Who filed the application? The Attorney-General’s Chambers, which is under the Prime Minister’s Department. Back then, you criticised it, protested and attacked. Now, suddenly, it is not hypocrisy?” he questioned in the posting, which he included a photo of Anwar and Zahid together - hands raised and smiling in their official political party shirts.
Amir also reminded PH supporters of the coalition’s previous political cooperation with BN, asking how many elections they had contested alongside the party.
He pointed to the red-and-blue vests worn by supporters during their joint campaigns, seats allocated to help BN candidates win and PH leaders raising their hands together with BN leaders in political solidarity.
He said PH had also stood by the coalition during the controversy surrounding Zahid’s 47 charges.
“I do not know how long this post would be if I quoted one by one what PH leaders said in defending and promoting BN at the time. Is it not hypocrisy now?” he wrote.
Beyond the Zahid controversy, Amir brought up PH’s previous criticism of Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki.
He recalled how PH figures had previously organised protests and taken to the streets against Azam, questioning what they had said about him when they were politically close to him.
Amir then pointed out that after PH came into government, Azam’s contract was extended three times.
He also questioned the government’s failure to deliver the promised Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the matter, saying there had been no findings from an investigation to date.
The former Muda leader further raised the allegations surrounding a corporate mafia following a Bloomberg report, including claims involving individuals close to Anwar and an alleged RM9.5 billion issue.
He questioned why there had seemingly been no comparable enforcement action against those implicated in the allegations.
“Were any of them raided, had their assets seized, accounts frozen or were they investigated? NONE,” he wrote.
Amir’s remarks offered a pointed response to PH supporters who had directed their frustration at Melaka voters following the coalition’s poor electoral performance.
Rather than questioning the electorate’s intelligence, he argued that political parties should reflect on their own decisions, past alliances and the controversies that voters may still remember.
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