Retirement will not silence Mahathir, says former deputy

comments     Yap Mun Ching and Steven Gan     Published     Updated

It is unlikely that the outspoken Dr Mahathir Mohamad will keep quiet once he steps down in October and it is up to his successor, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, to deal with the outgoing prime minister's prominent public presence.

"It is up to the leader (Abdullah) himself," said former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam when asked whether the new prime minister would come under pressure from Mahathir's meddling. "A PM is a PM. Accountability and responsibility rests with him."

Musa said the premier, like his predecessors, would continue to express his opinion in public.

"Not only Mahathir but no prime minister or president could normally keep quiet (after retirement). Mahathir, like every past prime minister, will have his own views but what is wrong with that? Maybe it could even be positive," he said in an exclusive interview with malaysiakini last week.

"In a small way, I am an ex-DPM. I will have my views and express them. I think it is a good thing and we should encourage it." he added.

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