'Little emperor' out of sight but not out of mind
Out of sight but not out of mind - Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew’s high-profile visit to Malaysia may have ended but former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad just couldn’t resist delivering a parting salvo and two to his adversary.
Out of sight but not out of mind - Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew’s high-profile visit to Malaysia may have ended but former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad just couldn’t resist delivering a parting salvo and two to his adversary.
Speaking during a question-and-answer session at a dinner function in Bandar Sunway, Petaling Jaya this evening, Mahathir said the purpose of Lee’s visit was apparently to school Malaysia’s ‘political greenhorns‘.
“Mr Lee is an old man. Older than me by three years. So he is very experienced in the running of a country.
“So he thinks that a lot of Malaysians are a little bit green in terms of their political understanding and in solving problems. So he has come to teach our politicians very important lessons,” said Mahathir.
Mahathir was referring to Lee’s just concluded eight-day tour across Malaysia to Selangor, Perak, Pahang, Penang, Kelantan and Negeri Sembilan.
Since he had met various political leaders, Mahathir, with his usual trademark sarcasm, said, “Expect better results now, since Mr Lee, the teacher of politics, has come to Malaysia”.
Apart from meeting prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, four sultans and menteris besar, the 85-year-old Lee also met both Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Rakyat leaders.
He also arranged for a separate visit with Rosmah Mansor, Najib’s wife.
Lee, however, did not meet his octogenarian nemesis, Mahathir.
One question from the floor touched on another of Mahathir’s pet peeves - the various ‘economic corridors’ launched by his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in late 2007.
‘Nothing’ from economic corridors
Mahathir was asked if he thought the money spent on these corridors would see results. The ex-premier bluntly answered that although the spending was announced, there was nothing to show for it.
“They launched three corridors simultaneously on the same day. I think that is where the money went. After that, you see practically nothing,” he said.
Referring to his time as prime minister, Mahathir said that he used to personally inspect project sites and would ask for regular photographic evidence of progress there.
“I don’t think pictures have been taken of any corridor, except for the launching. I don’t think any of the corridors have taken off at all,” he said.
To another question, Mahathir said that during his tenure as PM various crises were overcome by the formation of ‘action councils’ which analysed data to find solutions.
“We sieved through the data to find out why certain graphs were going up or down and to find a solution.
“The system does not guarantee an answer but it allows us to understand the situation much better and find better solutions,” he told guests at a ‘CEO Night’ dinner organised by the Malaysian Retail Chain Association.
During Mahathir’s 22-year reign, relations between Malaysia and Singapore were tempestuous at best.
Among those who met Lee during his recent visit were Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and Kelantan Menteri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat. But he did not meet with Mahathir who made it very clear that he was not too keen to meet Lee.
Local politicians lectured
In a posting on his blog on June 15, Mahathir unleashed a series of barbs against the Lee, Singapore’s first premier, whom he termed the ‘ little emperor from the tiny Middle Kingdom’.
He said all those who met the ‘great man from the little country’ were lectured on how Malaysia should be run.
‘We should not have anymore problems now. We have been told the direction to take.
‘MCA must help Umno to win because Singapore does not want an Islamic party like PAS to win. We must ensure this,’ wrote Mahathir.
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