TTF: One of the persons who made the exact claim that Zahid did was none other than Mohamad Sabu, the very Sabu Mahathir now shares a stage with. In any event, it seems to TTF that Mahathir is ashamed of his Indian ancestry, which says a lot about his regard for the Indian community here in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR: Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is “embarrassed” by his part-Indian descent, Umno Youth vice chief Khairul Azwan Harun suggested today.
Defending Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s remarks regarding Dr Mahathir’s original name, Khairul said the acting Umno deputy president was merely stating “facts”.
“What he (Zahid) said is a fact; why is it so difficult or embarrassing for (Dr Mahathir) to accept that (he) is of Iskandar Kutty ancestry?” he said during a press conference here today.
Zahid said during an Umno division meeting on Sunday that the National Registration Department informed him Dr Mahathir’s original name was Mahathir a/l Iskandar Kutty.
The “a/l” naming convention is associated with the ethnic Indian community and some East Malaysian natives, while the necessarily-Muslim Malays use “bin” in their patronyms.
An aide yesterday sought to explain that Zahid raised the matter to convey that Dr Mahathir was using the Malay community as he was not a “true Malay”.
Khairul Azwan said today the information Zahid revealed was already “public knowledge”.
“In fact, it is Dr Mahathir’s current allies, the likes of Anwar Ibrahim and Mohamad Sabu who previously made this claim. What is there to be embarrassed?” Khairul Azwan said.
Dr Mahathir has already accused Zahid of lying and challenged the latter to produce the IC with the alleged details.
Source: The Malay Mail Online
