KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 26): Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had intentionally not named him in statements Ahmad Zahid allegedly made about Mahathir’s ancestry, to avoid being sued, the court heard on Monday.

The 99-year-old former prime minister said this as he testified in the hearing of his defamation suit against Ahmad Zahid. Mahathir contended that while the statements Ahmad Zahid made in 2017 did not specifically name him, people could infer that it was about him due to the references Ahmad Zahid had made.

Such references include phrases like “in power for 22 years”, which Mahathir said referred to his first tenure as prime minister from 1981 to 2003. Mahathir returned to helm the government’s executive body from 2018 to early 2020.

“He didn’t mention my name because he is a politician [...] he hides. He intentionally didn’t name me in [alleged statements].

“He is a politician; he won’t directly say my name. [Politicians] want to be safe from being sued,”  he said.

Mahathir appeared sharp in court on Monday, as he displayed his infamous acerbic wit and come-backs. He didn’t hold back during the afternoon session of the trial, when he was cross-examined by Ahmad Zahid’s counsel Mohd Shahrul Fazli Kamarulzaman.

The duo went about in circles on whether anyone could trace the current Umno chief’s (Ahmad Zahid) comments to Mahathir, who was formerly Umno’s chief, given that Mahathir was not mentioned by name.

At one point, Mahathir, clad in a dark-grey, three-piece suit and a purple tie, quipped that politicians would lie whenever given a chance.

“Politicians would lie if there is a chance [...],” he said.

The defamation suit Mahathir filed revolves around Ahmad Zahid’s (age 71) comments made in 2017 — when he was also deputy prime minister, as well as the home minister — over Mahathir’s ancestry.

The two-time prime minister claimed that Ahmad Zahid’s defamatory statements insinuated that Mahathir was not born as a Malay or a Muslim, and alleged that his original name was “Mahathir son of Iskandar Kutty”.

Mahathir said the statements insinuated that he had claimed to be a Malay only to gain political and personal favours, and that he had a skewed view about the Indian community.

Earlier on Monday, Mahathir testified that he was born a Malay Muslim but has paternal roots that can be traced back to Kerala, India.

He added that Ahmad Zahid’s statements were absolutely false.

Mahathir, who is represented by Mior Nor Haidir Suhaimi and Muhammad Rafique Rashid Ali in the suit, is seeking general, exemplary and aggravated damages from Ahmad Zahid, and an injunction barring Ahmad Zahid or his agents from repeating the alleged claims.

The trial before Judicial Commissioner Gan Techiong will continue on Tuesday (Aug 27), with Mahathir to be further cross-examined. His son, former Kedah menteri besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, is also expected to take the stand to testify as Mahathir’s witness.

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