Petronas adviser Mahathir given the chop

KUALA LUMPUR - The government has sacked Tun Mahathir Mohamad as adviser to state oil company Petronas, exactly a week after the long-serving former premier brought together a broad alliance dedicated to removing Prime Minister Najib Razak from power.

The Prime Minister's Office said in a brief statement Friday evening (March 11) that the Cabinet discussed the actions of Dr Mahathir, "particularly in launching the so-called 'Citizen’s Declaration' with opposition leaders last week" and decided that since he was "no longer supporting the current Government, he should no longer hold any position related to the Government".

"The declaration aims to topple the democratically-elected Government led by the Prime Minister, and is therefore against the law and the Federal Constitution. Therefore, the Cabinet today agreed unanimously to terminate the appointment of Tun Mahathir as advisor to Petronas," the statement said.