With Mahathir heading the pack, a dystopian future awaits us
Karamjit Gill
It is the election fever all over again. It is time for empty promises and free goodies. It is the period where politicians get onto their knees to beg for votes.
The anti-government sentiments in urban areas are being ignited. However, compared to the previous two elections, the vibes are different this time. Somehow, the anti-government rallies are comparatively weaker.
Maybe it is a case of peaking too soon. When Dr Mahathir Mohamad joined the Opposition and maneuvered himself as their new godfather, Malaysians were made to believe that he has changed.
We were told that he is sorry for his past mistakes; an apology that only came from the mouth of all other opposition leaders and not from the man himself. But whenever he opens his mouth he is showing us that a leopard doesn’t change its spots.
The latest being with regards to business tycoon Robert Kuok. In his book ‘Robert Kuok, A Memoir’, he clearly mentioned how he was often sought after to provide donations and bailouts to BN and MCA in the past.
He specifically mentioned how he provided magnanimous funds to help MCA-controlled Multi-Purpose Holdings Berhad in the late 80’s. That was during the Mahathir-era.
However, Mahathir has blatantly denied it and stated that Kuok never gave money to BN when he was the prime minister. What do you expect, he even lies about his heritage with a straight face.
Next came Mahathir’s defence of the New Economic Policy (NEP), a policy that is largely criticised by Kuok and the Opposition for decades. Mahathir’s rebuttal on Kuok’s criticism of the NEP fortifies his single-ethnic favouritism.
When Najib Razak introduced the New Economic Model (NEM) in 2010 which favoured more equality, it was strongly opposed by non-other than Ibrahim Ali of Perkasa, in which Mahathir was the Advisor, citing worries that the bumiputeras would be left behind.
Mahathir keeps saying that Najib is the most hated man in Malaysia because the people are suffering with the country heading towards bankruptcy. Yet, we don’t see any riots or uprising in the streets of Malaysia.
His selective demented mind keeps forgetting that the biggest turnout, most brutal, and violent street rally in the history of Malaysia was in 1998 when he was in office. All other street rallies thereafter were nothing compared to the ’98 fiasco.
Presently, Malaysia has no credible opposition. The passing of Karpal Singh and Tok Guru has taken everything away. With PM Najib being forced to change old school conservative politics of BN, I fret the ‘change’ that happens when Mahathir comes into power under Pakatan will take us further backwards.
One thing is pretty clear. With Mahathir heading the pack, a dystopian future awaits Malaysia.
