Former premier could help shore up Malay votes, win back PR-held states
Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad (right) shaking hands with a party member as he arrives to attend the launch of BN’s election manifesto on Saturday. -- PHOTO: SIN CHEW DAILY/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
MRS Julia Talib needs a walking stick but even the thunderstorm on Saturday did not deter her from wading through the water puddles that soaked the hem of her baju kurung.
The 59-year-old Shah Alam resident had a date with her idol - Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
"Ever since he was prime minister, I have tried to watch him speak live," Mrs Talib told The Straits Times of the man who led Malaysia for 22 years, from 1981 to 2003. "He is a charismatic leader and that's why he is my idol."
People such as Mrs Talib are the reason why, even a decade after stepping down, Dr Mahathir continues to be a key figure in Malaysian politics.
Now free of the encumbrances of power, the 87-year-old seems to be enjoying himself on the stump, directing his trademark barbs at opposition figures and taking pro-Malay positions that resonate with the older generation of Malays.
"It was the lack of unity among Malays that made Barisan Nasional lose more seats in the 2008 general election," Professor Shamsul Adabi Mamat, a political analyst at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, told The Straits Times.
"That's why Dr Mahathir is such an asset to Umno currently - he is able to unite its members as well as the Malays."
At Saturday's rally, Dr Mahathir was at his oratorical best, taking digs at his former deputy- turned-nemesis Anwar Ibrahim, and praising current Prime Minister Najib Razak as a man who kept his word to the people.
"We were all cheated, including me, by this certain person that had claimed to be fighting for BN and Umno," he said, referring to Mr Anwar. "He is a liberal and promotes homosexuality."
His star power undimmed, Dr Mahathir had the people jostling for a better look when he and his wife made their way into a canopy tent before he spoke at the rally in Shah Alam, the state capital of opposition-held Selangor.
The BN had its worst electoral outing in 2008, while the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) took four states and increased its share of state and parliamentary seats.
"I am here to help save Selangor," Dr Mahathir declared as the crowd of several thousand applauded loudly.
"Selangor cannot continue to fall into irresponsible hands."
In the run-up to the general election which will be held within weeks, Dr Mahathir has emerged as one of the BN's chief campaigners.
The BN has vowed to wrest back the states it lost to the PR.
Looking sharp in a red shirt, Dr Mahathir showed no signs of his age as he worked the crowd on Saturday afternoon. He drew cheers again when he attended the launch of BN's election manifesto a few hours later.
In an op-ed piece in The New Straits Times yesterday, Dr Mahathir said that only the BN makes the "kongsi", or the concept of sharing, work in bringing peace and stability.
"The opposition simply cannot 'kongsi'. A mandate for the opposition will be disastrous for Malaysia," he wrote.
Last Sunday, he was in the BN's traditional stronghold of Johor to rally the people after the PR said it was sending some of its heavyweights to stand there.
Shrugging off the PR's strategy, he told Umno-owned Malay daily Utusan Malaysia yesterday: "Johor is a BN stronghold. Don't know how they think they can win there."
Political analysts said Dr Mahathir's increasingly pro-Malay positions may have alienated some urbanites and non-Malays but could galvanise Malay voters who feel insecure with the push towards liberalism.
Dr Mahathir is also expected to help win back Kedah by campaigning in the state where his youngest son Mukhriz is seen as a front- runner to become Menteri Besar in a BN victory.
Dr Mahathir denied he is being used by BN to win more votes.
"In fact, I am using BN's platform to thank my supporters for all these years," he said. "As long as I am fit, I will travel around the country to thank them."
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