Twenty years is a 'good amount of time' to spend in office as a country's leader as shorter terms could be a stumbling block to proper governance, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad told participants of an economic conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

"When I first became prime minister it took me two years to learn, two years to work things out and 10 years to wait for the results," he said.

Mahathir, who became prime minister in 1981, said this during a question and answer session with participants of the 10th World Economic Development Congress being held at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC).

"20 years is a good amount of time to have spent as a leader. I don't think many have had the chance to do this," he said.

Mahathir warned that shorter terms in office could lead to problems and political turmoil.

"If you keep changing prime ministers every two years, then the predecessor would want to show his hand in government and the leaders after would want to see the policies changed.

"You are going to see a lot of political turmoil," he said, adding that, " being a prime minister for one term is not enough".

'Slow the pendulum'

Mahathir also took a swipe at today's youth saying that, "they (the youths) think they know everything."

Mahathir related an experience when a first-year university student questioned him about running a government to which he had replied, "being in government for 20 years, I must have learnt something".

(In Malaysia, there is no provision in the Constitution which sets a limitation to a prime minister's term in office.)

Answering a question on how Western ideas are treated in the Asian context, Mahathir said that Asians should adopt these ideas 'slowly'.

The premier said that an idea can start off well but when embellished many times it eventually becomes bad.

"Like democracy, it is good when it shows the will of the majority but now it seems to represent the will of the individual," Mahathir said.

The veteran leader also called on Asia to act as a buffer against such ideas and not accept them completely as it may lead to chaos.

"Asia should act as a weight to slow down the pendulum. We should be more orthodox and not get swept off our feet. Democracy may work in Malaysia but not in many countries," he said.

"There should not be an overnight change from autocracy to democracy. The people will be destabilised and would not be ready to cope with the freedom. They will take to the streets pushing governments up and then down, creating anarchy," reasoned the premier.

'Anti-foreigners'

Earlier, In his keynote address when opening the congress, Mahathir spoke critically of globalisation and reiterated his stance on certain currency traders whom he said profited at the expense of others.

"The globalisation theologians tell us about the gains from trade. Why do they not tell us of the pains of trade?" questioned Mahathir.

"Why don't they tell us about the trading of a few currency traders which earn them billions at the expense of millions losing their jobs, their subsidised rice and fuel, and at times even their lives," he added.

Following the 1997 regional economic crisis, Mahathir had largely blamed international currency traders, in particular US-based Quantum Fund head George Soros, for being the catalyst behind the recession.

"I believe that it is critically important for us to empower ourselves, to think for ourselves to ensure that we have the will, the wit and the wherewithal to decide our own destiny.

"This is not easy in a world where the large majority of developing countries are already in debt, enslaved under IMF rule or massive World Bank conditions or are dependant on foreign aid," said the prime minister.

Though it may be too late for certain countries, "history has shown that the tide can be turned," he added.

Later, when asked at a press conference if his 'anti-foreigners' speech delivered during the Umno annual general assembly recently could affect incoming trade, Mahathir replied that his speech was not anti-foreigners and that Malaysia welcomes foreign investment.

"When we achieved independence we did not nationalise our industries but allowed foreign investment. However, we should be allowed to interpret things our way," he added.