SUCH is the question posed by Madani backers upon unearthing a May 11, 2018 Facebook post of firebrand UMNO Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh who called for disgraced former premier Datuk Seri Najib Razak to vacate the party’s presidency in view of UMNO’s heavy losses in the 14th General Election (GE14).
Among others, the self-proclaimed defender of race and religion penned back then (bear in mind that he only assumed his current chieftain role on March 11, 2023):
To DS Najib, I apologise that my words may offend you but this is the truth that I need to tell you for this is what the rakyat and the UMNO grassroots want.
The BN chairman NEEDS TO STEP DOWN.
UMNO needs a new breath of leadership, one that can give a positive impact from the people’s perspective, a leadership that can give new hope and generate trust in UMNO.
I agree with some that we should be loyal to the skipper of the ship when we sail and are tossed by the waves, hence we remained loyal to the (UMNO) president during the GE14 struggle.
But now that our ship has almost capsized, we’ve to do something lest our ship will only remain history like the Titanic.”
Interestingly, the Merlimau state assemblyman admitted that the statement did belong to him but “that doesn’t reduce our respect and love for leaders whom we’ve served”.
“Even though I was among those who asked for DS Najib to resign in 2018, to this day I’ve never forgotten his contributions or desert DS Najib even though he has no power or position at the moment,” he penned on his Facebook page.
In fending off the notion that he is a hypocrite by riding on the incarcerated Bossku for his own political mileage, the former Melaka state EXCO claimed that he is “unlike certain quarters who excelled in apple polishing DS Najib but have since disappeared from sight”.
“That’s the difference between speaking the truth yet being respectful than being a bootlicker to earn a living”.
While detractors have seized the moment to red-flag Akmal “as a fox in sheep’s clothing whose loyalty lies not in UMNO but PAS”, his fans see the damning revelation as both a spin and sign of desperation by Madani backers to discredit the UMNO Youth chief.
Incredibly, one drew the analogy of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim pushing for Tan Sri Azam Baki to step down as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption (MACC) chief commissioner in the run-up to GE15 yet he is now backing the latter by virtue of not one but three post-retirement contract extensions. – Jan 21, 2026
Main image credit SW CHANNEL/Facebook
