Armstrong & Mahathir

Harry Truman and Tunku Abdul Rahman are analogous. Upon completing his presidential term, Truman stepped out of the White House, took a train, and went home. When Tunku stepped down as Prime Minister of Malaysia, a friend paid his taxes because he was broke. They both drew government pensions until they died. They were rare examples of politicians who drew only power, rather than wealth, from their craft. 

Lance Armstrong and Mahathir Mohamed are analogous. Despite bagging seven Tours, Armstrong came out of a cushy retirement for his eighth at the prodding of his sponsors. He was back for one last job, which, incidentally, retired robber barons are known to itch for. The thing is, Armstrong denied a disgraced ex-teammate, Floyd Landis, a place in his team. In response, a spurned Landis, who knew where the bodies were buried, spilled the beans on Armstrong's 20-year doping history, which unravelled his legacy. Safe to assume Armstrong regrets coming out for that, one last job. 

"No serious economist could defend Malaysia's current course of using public money to prop up failed businesses connected to the political elite."

The above quote is not from a current article about 1MDB but from a piece in the Wall Street Journal published on 22 December 1998 under the title 'Malaysia Props Up Crony Capitalists.' It is about Mahathir "bailing out favoured companies and politically well-connected individuals. Renong's problems can be traced back to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's disastrous privatization policy, a policy which has enriched a well-connected few at the expense of the government and public."

In his book Malaysian Maverick (2009), the late Barry Wain said, "US$100 billion went missing during Mahathir's time as Prime Minister from 1981 to 2003. Much of these missing monies may be the difference between the actual cost of government procurements, contracts, tenders, permits, concessions, quotas, licenses, and the like and the amount that they eventually cost the taxpayers, i.e., double, triple, or even up to ten times the actual amount." 

On 9 May 2018, the opposition led by Mahathir experienced a suspension of critical judgment brought about by amnesia. It is lost on the masses that during Mahathir's term, the Forex affair cost taxpayers RM30 billion, Perwaja Steel RM10 billion, Bank Bumiputra RM10 billion, and Konsortium Perkapalan RM1.6 billion. This culminated in Renong, which sent the stock market reeling. A presumption of guilt even is responded to with sarcasm and cynicism. 

UMNO's dream team is back, and they are making the right noises to enthral the beguiled masses. Post-election is not the dawn of a clean Malaysia based on the people's hopes and aspirations but that of the old Mahathir-Daim UMNO, based on nepotism and patronage. 

Plant a flag if the Finance Ministry is eventually assigned to a lackey saddled with a conflict of interest to keep the evidence buried. Plant a flag if the baton of his premiership is handed to a loyalist to ensure his 'legacy' and as in Armstrong, when an ex-teammate, who knows where the bodies are buried, is denied a place in the team. 

Unlike Truman and Tunku, Mahathir is hardly an example of a politician who draws only power from his craft.

Words, Tommy Peters.