Mahathir must be fearing the worst. He has never visualised any party other than Umno in Putrajaya.
If
one could smell fear, then those around former prime minister Dr
Mahathir Mohamad, his family, BN politicians and their cronies, would
need strong stomachs to deal with the overpowering stench.
When a person is running scared, he turns on his attackers or finds another person to take the rap. Mahathir has done both.
As we enter the final stages of the run-up to GE-13, Mahathir has
lost none of his sarcasm. Only the most loyal of his sycophants will
still receive him as warmly as before. He has become an outcast of 97%
of the population.
In the preceding months, Mahathir has remained cocksure and taken pot
shots at the opposition. He did not believe that the opposition could
deliver their promises; nor would he accept that BN has neglected the
rakyat, for the last 56 years.
You would expect a former PM to have some respect for the rakyat; but
Mahathir derided them when he said that they could not appreciate
political debates because of their immaturity and that they were too
emotional to rationalise.
He said, “This is not America, but even in the US, debates only serve
to expose how stupid the candidates are.” Might this explain the
preponderance of Umno candidates’ refusal to debate their opposition
counterparts?
Mahathir’s rhetoric is an indication of his internal fears. In the
previous weeks he has shown his trademark arrogance and egotism. The
sudden adoption of a defensive position shows an agitated mind.
His remarks about the opposition are revealing, “They will take
action against people who were not friendly, or they think were not
friendly to them,” and he voiced his fears about being arrested by the
incumbent government.
This climb-down is unprecedented. Mahathir has never adopted this
tone before and to talk about being arrested is unheard of. Mahathir’s
lack of confidence is telling. This is again shown by his tacit mention
of a “Pakatan-controlled Federal government”.
Mahathir must be fearing the worst. He has never visualised any party other than Umno in Putrajaya.
Perhaps, the other damning insight into Mahathir’s state of mind is
his attempt to shift attention from himself to Prime Minister Najib Tun
Razak.
Mahathir’s admission that he engineered the foreign invasion of Sabah
by the back door, his foolish attempt to sully the name of the Father
of Independence, Tunku Abdul Rahman, followed by his effort to implicate
his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim, does not endear him to the public.
Divide and rule
The rakyat sees that billions of ringgit have been squandered on defence weaponry, when the real enemy was the prime minister.
So, what does a coward do when he is cornered? Mahathir who had
underestimated the anger of the rakyat, believing that they still
“adored” him, had attempted to deflect criticism and draw attention away
from him, by focusing on Najib.
He urged Umno to cast Najib aside if BN were to perform badly in
GE-13. Somehow, he forgot that it is the rakyat who decides, and not
Umno members.
He criticised the former PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi for leaving a weak
government for Najib and refused to accept that successive BN
governments have been corrupt and weak.
Instead of building on the strong foundations and a united people at
the time of Independence, Mahathir preyed on each race’s specific
weaknesses, to undermine them further. He perpetuated the British
concept of Divide and Rule, to keep the natives in check. We swopped
British imperialism for Mahathirism.
Mahathir’s contempt for us is shown when he sniggered at the thought
of his possible arrest by the opposition should they win Putrajaya.
“Without the ISA, I feel more comfortable”.
He disregarded the suffering he inflicted on his critics and
political opponents, when the liberal use of the ISA and Operation
Lalang traumatised thousands of people. People suffered physical and
mental health problems. Families were broken-up and left destitute.
People like S Ambiga and Maria Chin Abdullah always kept toothbrushes
in their handbags, because they knew that they could be detained
whenever they left their houses. Mahathir now knows what it feels like
to be hunted.
Finally, Mahathir let the cat out of the bag when he suggested that
Najib should step down and allow his deputy, Muhyiddin Yassin, to take
charge, if BN were to win by a slim margin. He has always feared that
his legacy would be forgotten and his political dynasty halted.
How ironical that Mahathir tried to obliterate all traces of British
rule including the language, names of roads and towns, only to find that
in 2013, Malaysians are desperate to obliterate all traces of him, his
cronyism and his corruption.
Earlier this month, Najib was foolish to visit Gaza when his own
backyard is like a tinderbox. His diplomatic gaffe put him in the
spotlight and the American media has now turned their attention on him
and perhaps, alerted the Americans to the wider troubles Malaysia faces.
It is the publicity and recognition that many of us have been waiting
for. Najib was daft to fish for Muslim votes that way and Anifah Aman,
the foreign minister should be congratulated for being a weak sycophant
and not insisting upon adherence to diplomatic protocol and
pleasantries.
Najib could take the fast-track to redemption with the rakyat and be guaranteed a place in Malaysian history as a Super-Hero.
He should steal a march on Pakatan and arrest Mahathir, before Pakatan gets that honour.
Mahathir must be resigned to his arrest for crimes against the
Malaysian people. Like most criminals, he will find great relief when
the chase is over.
Mariam Mokhtar is a FMT columnist.
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