Dr M: I thought Tommy was impartial until his book came out

Ex-prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he appointed Tommy Thomas as attorney general (AG) as he was known to be “impartial” but once the latter’s explosive memoir came out, his perception has changed.

Thomas’ appointment was based on the fact that he was a lawyer who followed the rule of law, Mahathir told The Star.

He said it was only when Thomas (above) wrote the book “My Story: Justice In The Wilderness” that he started to voice out his opinions.

“His appointment was done before he wrote the book.

“We knew at the time that he was a lawyer who sticks to the rule of law. So, he was appointed as he was known for this.

“He was not biased in favour of the government. In fact, he was very critical of me when I was the prime minister. He was impartial, that is why he was appointed,” said Mahathir, whose attempt to form a unity government under his leadership during the height of the Sheraton Move caused the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan federal administration.

Mahathir said that if he could make the decision again, he would appoint a person who is not biased.

He went on to laud previous AG Abdul Gani Patail for his willingness to investigate former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak over his involvement in the 1MDB scandal.

Mahathir said when Najib got to know about the investigation, he dismissed Abdul Gani and immediately appointed Mohamed Apandi Ali.

“The moment Apandi was appointed, he declared Najib was not wrong but later on, when Thomas was appointed, the AG found that there were a lot of wrong deeds committed by Najib.

“Thomas, upon looking at the evidence, decided that this must be sent to the courts.

“When it was sent to the courts, nine judges and three courts over four years decided that Najib had committed a lot of crimes, which showed that Apandi was not doing his work properly,” claimed Mahathir.

Apandi replaced Abdul Gani as the AG from 2015 to 2018 before Thomas replaced him in 2018.

Malay leadership

Mahathir went on to tout Malay leadership in defiance of Thomas’ belief that after two-and-a-half years of “Malay-dominated” cabinets since the Sheraton Move, it was clear to him and Malay voters that the outcome has not been satisfactory.

“This country has been independent for more than 65 years.

“For more than 60 years, the government of this country was dominated by the Malays. It became an ‘Asian Tiger’ and became the best performing of all the former British colonies.

“So, you cannot blame the Malays for bad governance because they grew this country whereas the British did not,” said the two-time prime minister.

Harapan's silence on Thomas implies guilt - PM

COMMENT | Why we should come out and vote

PM: Use reports on Thomas’ book, Pulau Batu Puteh as ‘political ammo’

Professors' Council warns 'racist' Thomas over 'failed Malay govt' remarks