Mahathir’s road to the Republic of Malaysia
Another phobia Mahathir suffers from is his anti-royalty streak. Umno was formed by royalty in the palace of the Sultan of Johor. Onn Jaafar, one of the founders of Umno, was a Johor courtier or orang istana. Tunku Abdul Rahman was born and bred in the palace. Tun Razak Hussein was a Pahang courtier, as is Najib Abdul Razak, of course. Tun Hussein Onn was a Johor courtier.
THE CORRIDORS OF POWER
Raja Petra Kamarudin
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has always suffered from an inferiority complex from his childhood days. Malays of Indian mixed-marriages back in the Merdeka era were regarded as second-class Malays. Today, of course, times have changed and Mamaks practically run the country.
Even in his university days in Singapore, Mahathir had to suffer an identity crisis. He was sort of stuck between two races and was neither Malay nor Indian. That was when he developed a great hatred for Singapore and anything Singapore…until today. The Singapore-phobia which Mahathir suffered from in his university days never really went away.
Another phobia Mahathir suffers from is his anti-royalty streak. Umno was formed by royalty in the palace of the Sultan of Johor. Onn Jaafar, one of the founders of Umno, was a Johor courtier or orang istana. Tunku Abdul Rahman was born and bred in the palace. Tun Razak Hussein was a Pahang courtier, as is Najib Abdul Razak, of course. Tun Hussein Onn was a Johor courtier.
Tunku Abdul Rahman knew that Mahathir was anti-monarchy and considered him a pariah
Mahathir is the first mixed-breed Malay who had absolutely no links with the palace to become prime minister. And in 1987 he was almost ousted by another courtier or orang istana, Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. And Mahathir had to rig the party election to win the Umno presidency…at least this is what Ku Li alleges.
In Malay culture, if your father is Malay you are Malay. But if your father is Indian, like Mahathir, then you are Indian. Unlike the Jews who will be Jew if the mother is Jew (even if the father is non-Jew), Malays consider what you are according to what your father is. So, to most Malays, especially to Tunku Abdul Rahman, Mahathir is Indian and not Malay.
This is something that really upset Mahathir and, to make it worse, back in those days you need to be orang istana to lead Umno. Hence it is not surprising that Mahathir hated royalty and all those associated with royalty, such as the orang istana at the top of the Umno leadership. And Mahathir hated Tunku Abdul Rahman like there was no tomorrow.
Mahathir is now the darling of the non-Malay community when at one time they regarded him as a pariah
Dennis Ignatius wrote something about Mahathir today, which you can read below.
One part that I found interesting is where Dennis said, “I suspect that Mahathir now sees how important it is to have strong and independent institutions if we are to avoid a recurrence of the mess we are now in. That we came so perilously close to dictatorship and national collapse had a salutary effect on him as with all of us.”
What in hell is Dennis trying to say? It was Mahathir who destroyed the independence of Parliament and the Judiciary. Then he tried to destroy the Monarchy so that he could turn Malaysia into a Republic. In the past, the Monarchy was the check and balance to Parliament. Then Mahathir changed the law so that His Majesty the Agong’s consent was no longer required for Parliament Bills to be passed as law. In other words, the Prime Minister decides and it gets bulldozed past Parliament and the Agong to become law.
This Dennis Ignatius is either mad or he has been paid to write this bodek article about Mahathir.
Mahathir started the move to turn Malaysia into a republic 30 years ago and now he is back to finish the job: perjuangan belum selesai
Dennis also said, “Mahathir, after all, is prime minister today because he was able to galvanise the nation in an almost Churchillian manner and convince the people that he was the right man for the job; others who aspire for the position will have to do likewise.”
Yes, I am glad Dennis compares Mahathir to Churchill because Churchill was dishonest and a Machiavellian to boot. Churchill played out India and because of that India ended up in a disaster with partition, the creation of Pakistan, and one million deaths. Churchill played out the Arabs and until today the Middle East is in a mess. Churchill played out Malaya, Burma and Australia during WWII and millions died because of it. Churchill made a deal with the Malayan Communist Party and armed them to the teeth, which became a huge problem after 1945. Churchill made a deal with Stalin, which resulted in tens of millions of deaths and the creation of the Iron Curtain post-WWII.
Yes, I can go on and on about the devious things that Churchill did. And the only ‘good’ thing about Dennis Ignatius’s article is when he compares Mahathir to Churchill. Many of the bad things happening in the world today is because of Churchill. And many of the bad things happening in Malaysia today is because of Mahathir.
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Dennis Ignatius
Reading Dr Mahathir Mohamad has always been a full-time occupation. Despite his many years in office and the millions of words that have been written or spoken about him, he’s still an enigma. Perhaps that’s what makes him so endearing to the man on the street. The thousands of ordinary Malaysians who turned up for his Hari Raya open house recently is proof enough of that.
Not everyone is pleased that he’s back in office, though. Even those who like what they see happening in the country can’t bring themselves to give him credit for it. They see but cannot believe. They see but worry about cronies. They see but wonder what he is really up to. They seem uncomfortable that history has conspired to make him both the man whom many blame for the ills of our nation and the man to save the nation.
I suppose the persona of the man is such that you either adore him or despise him; indifference is not an option.
Dennis Ignatius believes a leopard can change its spots
Has Mahathir changed?
No surprise then that despite all the amazing changes we are seeing in the country today, doubts about whether Mahathir has really changed persist, as if Mahathir is somehow unconnected with all these amazing changes.
Most Malaysians, on the other hand, have no trouble accepting that Mahathir is simply not the same man he was when he first took office more than 30 years ago.
For them, the proof of this is not so much in what he is saying but in what he is doing. Already, he has introduced changes that have shaken up the nation and demonstrated his commitment to changing the way we do politics in this country. At this rate, Malaysia will be a different country in a few years’ time.
I suspect that Mahathir now sees how important it is to have strong and independent institutions if we are to avoid a recurrence of the mess we are now in. That we came so perilously close to dictatorship and national collapse had a salutary effect on him as with all of us.
And this is as much about the past as it is about the future. Mahathir understands he must curtail his own executive power if he is to ensure that those who come after him will never again have the opportunity to subvert our constitutional system of governance the way Najib did. If Mahathir succeeds, the executive will henceforth be constrained by a system of constitutional and political checks and balances. It will be our safeguard against future executive overreach. It may well be one of his greatest legacies.
Tengku Razaleigh says Mahathir cheated in the 1987 Umno party election
Punching from the shadows
In the meantime, those who believe that Mahathir still needs to prove himself ought to live by the same rule. After all, Mahathir is not the only one with a history and he didn’t rule the country the first time around all by himself. Many others were willing and enthusiastic collaborators at one time or another. Under the principle of collective responsibility, they too must share the burden of history and prove that they’ve changed.
For the sake of the nation, Mahathir has reached out to his old foes. They say they accept his apologies, and are pleased that he has changed, but strangely keep reminding everyone how wrong he alone was without mentioning their own culpability. Perhaps they are impatient and want him to go sooner rather than later.
Like it or not, in the new Malaysia, it is the people who are masters of the nation’s destiny. They, and they alone, decide who will lead the nation. The notion that anyone has an inherent right to rule is undemocratic, to say the least. The public, in any case, is not bound by any private back-room deals that may have been made.
Dennis compares Mahathir to Churchill who played out many people and left the world in a mess
The right man for the job
Mahathir, after all, is prime minister today because he was able to galvanise the nation in an almost Churchillian manner and convince the people that he was the right man for the job; others who aspire for the position will have to do likewise.
Mahathir is now using the precious time he has left to him to do his bit for the country; it would be nice if others would come alongside him wholeheartedly and unreservedly. Punching Mahathir from the shadows – offering support while constantly reminding people that Mahathir isn’t really a good guy to begin with – only makes people wonder what the shadow boxers are up to.
Dennis Ignatius is a former ambassador.
