Mahathir's mixed media legacy

COMMENT | One is never too young to learn nor too old to lead in politics. A 26-year-old youth and sports minister has yet to leave an impression, even as our 94-year-old prime minister focuses on “setting Malaysia on the road of recovery” from years of graft and corruption under the Najib administration.

Dr Mahathir Mohamed’s birthday wish on July 10 sounds like he is seeking to reinvent a legacy as he necessarily fades from politics with a trail of mega projects - from Proton and Petronas Twin Towers to Putrajaya and Multimedia Super Corridor – indelibly marking for posterity his decades of, at times, Machiavellian leadership.

I recall the optimism of the 2M (Mahathir-Musa) government in the early 80s: “leadership by example”, “clean, efficient and trustworthy government”, “Look East”. The turn of the century brought “Malaysia Boleh” and “Vision 2020”. An agro-based economy was transformed to one of science, technology, service-oriented and knowledge-based.

Be that as it may, the good memories come with the not-so-good ones from Mahathir’s 22 years as prime minister...