Former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad will talk on the 11th Malaysia Plan, 1Malaysia Development Bhd, Bantuan Rakyat 1Malaysia and Vision 2020 as the nation hits the final stretch of its development plan.

Dr Mahathir who has  expressed misgivings about 1MDB and Malaysia achieving Vision 2020, will speak at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Malaysia (FCCM) on June 1 at a dinner at Istana Hotel.

The architect of Vision 2020, Dr Mahathir will speak about Malaysia's progress and the impact of 1MDB's extraordinary debt level.

FCCM president Shannon Teoh said there has been positive and negative news about realising the goals of Vision 2020,initiated in 1991 at the start of Sixth Malaysia Plan.

Vision 2020's goal is for Malaysia to be a self-sufficient industrialized nation by 2020.

"We hope Tun can comment on both what is good and what needs to be fixed in this final stretch towards Vision 2020," said Teoh, referring to Mahathir by his honorific title.

"Tun has continued to be relevant even after his 22 years as PM. He makes very cutting observations on national issues and controversial things that others may not be willing to.

"We're organising this as a frank discussion with foreign media because Malaysia's development story has been well-covered by both local and foreign press."

Last month, Mahathir expressed doubts that the target of becoming a fully developed nation will be achieved.

"By 2020, I think we will have the per capita income, but we will not be a developed country," he said at the World Bloggers and Social Media Summit recently.

"I made the mistake in 1991 when I launched vision 2020, where I merely called for Malaysia to become a developed nation by 2020, and I didn't explain what a developed nation is," he added.

Mahathir said that Malaysia needs to make its own "mould" of what a developed nation is, not just copy what another country is doing.

He lamented that the nation required an annual growth of 7 percent over the thirty-year periods, so that the economy would be eight times stronger than it was in 1990 when the GDP of RM115 billion.

Mahathir's reservations are not shared by the Najib administration, which has repeatedly said Malaysia will reach high income status before the 2020 target.

The ex-premier has been on a campaign to oust sitting PM Najib Abdul Razak, attacking Najib through his blog and various speaking engagements.

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