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PETALING JAYA: Former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad has signaled that he can run in the next general election, saying his supporters don’t want him to withdraw.
In an interview with Singapore’s The Straits Times, Mahathir, 95, also said that he cannot reconcile with Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, because his successor “has adopted the kind of strategy that Najib (Razak) had, undermining all who are against him. ” .
He said his proposal not to appear at GE15 has caused discontent among his followers.
“They still want me to say that I want to compete. It is true that most people at 95 would not be functional. I am more fortunate, I can still be active. But they don’t seem to think that I’ll deteriorate when I’m older. They see me as I am now. So they want me to at least not say that I won’t compete, ”he said.
Working with Muhyiddin, Mahathir said he cannot reconcile with him because the prime minister is engaged in the same politics that both had tried to reform when they defeated the Najib-led government in the last general election.
“How can I accept Muhyiddin like this?” he said, adding that the president of the PPBM was willing to work with Najib because “politics is more important than principles.”
However, ST said he admitted that he and the other opposition parties are not in a position to challenge Muhyiddin’s parliamentary majority, as they are divided over who should take over as prime minister.
“Anwar (Ibrahim) has a lot of people who are against him. If they don’t accept me, many (of my followers) will withdraw so that he does not have a majority. Now he says that he has the support of 20 to 30 deputies, but all have denied it, “he said.
Mahathir also said that he is not in favor of an early election, as he does not believe that either side can get a stronger mandate.
This is because the public is not yet ready to vote on substantive issues after the political turmoil of recent months, he said, and would make its choice “not because the party is good,” but based on historical sentiment.
“The same people will be elected and you will find that there will be a hung parliament or a very small majority,” he said.
“Like now, if three people have a stomachache and did not attend Parliament, they will fall. What kind of government is that? “
On Malaysia’s affirmative action policies that have greatly benefited the Malaysian majority, Mahathir said they could be phased out if the country had stayed the course to become a developed nation with a narrow wealth gap by this year.
But, he said, endemic corruption has hampered progress toward developing the economy and attempts to redistribute wealth that began half a century ago under the New Economic Policy.
“If you reduce the disparity, jealousy, envy will be reduced. The country will be stable, then the country will grow, “he told ST in the interview on Friday.
“When the difference in terms of wealth is not that great, that’s okay. We can end that (affirmative action). “
