COMMENT | Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been extremely good in getting what he wants, throughout his entire political career. When he was prime minister for the first time, he got rid of three of his deputies before he found one in Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Musa Hitam didn’t last, Ghafar Baba didn’t last, and Mahathir made it a lifelong mission to make sure Anwar Ibrahim didn’t last as well.

When he was out of office in 2003, he never thought any of the prime ministers measured up, although he handpicked them. So he took out Abdullah, and he took the whole village to remove Najib Abdul Razak’s scandalous government.

Mahathir has always expected to have something to do with politics. He couldn’t keep to his pledge of retiring from it.

For those whom he regarded as having wronged him, he made personal undertakings to strike back. A master tactician with a wicked appetite to succeed, many are fearful of being on his bad books.

That is why Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin’s decision to expel Mahathir from the party was a bold move – one that took...