In his latest swipe at Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad turns the clock back to the colonial era.

Mahathir cited the agreement between the Malay rulers and the British, where it was stated the empire would assign an officer to "advise" the sultans.

However, he said the same agreement also stipulated that when the British adviser offered his view, the ruler must accept it.

Comparing this with his recent reprimand of the policies of Najib ( right ), Mahathir, who also said he was "happy" that the government had taken note of his views, added that it was up to the prime minister to heed and implement it.

"My reprimand was not an advice (in the colonial context). To accept it or not, as well as to implement (my suggestions) is up to the person who has been reprimanded.

"Perhaps (my reprimand) is without basis. Whether it has basis or not will be known when put to the test," he added in his blog today.

Mahathir pointed out that best test in a democratic nation is the election.

"If (my) reprimand has no basis, and the policies and approaches (which have been reprimanded) are continued, then a huge (election) victory will be obtained," he added.

Mahathir noted how his successor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi secured a major victory in the 2004 general election, but suffered a huge setback in the election four years later.

Mahathir once again reiterated how Najib, who succeeded Abdullah ( right in photo ), failed to reverse BN’s fortunes.

"The successor was supposed to perform better. But no, the achievement of the sixth prime minister (Najib) was far worse in GE13," he added.

He said Najib was unsuccessful despite dishing out government money in the millions, turning his back on the New Economic Policy, pandering to those who did not appreciate his gestures, increasing national debt and heeding the advice of foreign consultants.

Mahathir also warned that those who do not learn from their past experiences might suffer an even worse outcome compared with before.