Let's give Dr Mahathir Mohamad credit where it is due. His push for industrialisation and infrastructure development are his finest legacies. However, his failures are glaring.

He has allowed racial divisions in this country to deteriorate to the breaking point. Over the 22 years of his reign, the word 'muhibbah' went out of fashion. He allowed corruption to flourish. Perhaps by rearing a pack of cronies, it was easier for him to implement his mega-projects. Under his rule, the civil service remained corrupted and ineffective.

Another area where Mahathir has failed miserably is in education. Instead of developing world-class centres of higher learning, we are now saddled with 60,000 unemployed (unemployable?) graduates.

Mahathir is a man who believes that the end justifies the means. He destroyed the independence of the judiciary to ensure that no one could challenge his authority.

There are many lessons to be learnt from the antics of the longest serving prime minister of Malaysia.