Why did former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad give an interview to online daily malaysiakini ?

That was the question put to him by a reporter during a function attended by Mahathir in Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.

"They wanted to see me. Even six years ago, they wrote a lot about me. They were not for me, but now they want to talk to me," said Mahathir.

"I don't know what they have written. I have not seen (it), maybe it's something not nice, maybe it's something nice," he told a press conference after speaking at the Corporate Governance Award 2005 organised by weekly magazine Malaysian Business .

"But I have given interviews to people who do not like me - Far Eastern Economic Review , Time magazine, Economist , and they all always wrote nasty things about me after I gave them an interview," said Mahathir.

We offered to sell sand

He was also questioned on his claims, which was reported in malaysiakini today, that it was Malaysia which offered to sell sand to persuade Singapore to build a straight bridge.

"Yes, I think so, as far as I know it was Malaysia which offered," he said.

Mahathir told malaysiakini that contrary to what the government had claimed, it was not Singapore which demanded sand from Malaysia as a condition to build the bridge.

When further asked whether he had evidence to substantiate his claim, Mahathir answered:

"Well, that's what I heard. Maybe the government can verify whether there is or there isn't because this present government is very transparent, so I am quite sure that the government will tell everything if you ask them."

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