COMMENT Praises of the chief by the deputy is de rigueur, but Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi found this task tough to bring off without embarrassment yesterday, when he officiated at the launch of a book about Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

How do you praise when a lot of the vibes about the boss these days reek of disgrace?

Zahid could not possibly have drawn inspiration from the book itself, which is entitled ‘Najib Razak 40 Years 40 Pictures’.

Books about sitting prime ministers - and launched by deputies - cannot be anything but hagiographies.

In the circumstances, all the deputy can wish for is that the chief is out of town when the launch is held - in the hope that distance makes the compliments a tad less servile.