(June 8): An Umno minister has shot down the need for a debate between Datuk Seri Najib Razak and his supporter-turned-critic Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad on 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), saying it is not the norm to have a verbal slug match in public.

Communication and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said there had never been any debates between a sitting prime minister and a former premier.

This was also the case during Dr Mahathir’s 22-year tenure as prime minister, he added.

"During his time, there was also criticism directed against him from former prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, but it is not our tradition to have public debates.

"If I have any differences of opinion with my father, for example, I don't have a public debate but we look for ways to (resolve) it," he said at the lobby of the Parliament building today.

Last month, Dr Mahathir said he was open to a debate with his chosen successor Najib over debt-laden 1MDB.

"I believe I still have the ability to debate. So yes, if he wants to," the retired statesman said in response to a question from Tamrin Ghafar at a meet-the-people session in Ipoh, Perak to discuss the political situation in the country.

A forum on 1MDB on Friday, which Najib was scheduled to attend, was indefinitely postponed after the prime minister backed out on the advice of Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar who ordered the dialogue cancelled on the grounds of "public order and national harmony".

The event was postponed and Dr Mahathir, who was at the forum, instead took to the stage before police stopped him from addressing more than 1,000 people gathered at the venue.

Observers said Najib's no-show at the forum would undermine his credibility and damage his reputation, adding that despite security concerns, the prime minister, who had only a day earlier declared that he had a "warrior spirit", should have proven his mettle by engaging his critics and answering questions on current issues, especially on matters surrounding the state investment vehicle.

Dr Mahathir has for months openly criticised Najib’s administration and some of his policies, including the fiasco surrounding the debt-laden 1MDB.

Shabery reiterated the Cabinet's stand on the state investment vehicle, saying there would not be any bailout involving public funds.

He said to ensure transparency, the Cabinet had directed both the auditor-general and Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to look through the company's books as well as its operations.

Shabery also denied claims that he was one of the ministers opposed to 1MDB and that he walked out of last week’s Cabinet meeting where Najib had told ministers who did not agree with the rehabilitation of the firm to resign. – The Malaysian Insider