Perhaps we should give Dr M a second chance

YOURSAY | 'Half a step away from hell is better than a backward step towards it...'

Poll: M'kini readers believe Mahathir can be trusted

Fairplayer: I never trusted former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad. I still don't trust him.

However, I am willing to take some risk in backing him in this round. Even with his possible U-turn after Pakatan Harapan comes into power, it can't be worse than the current Malaysian Official 1 (MO1) held administration.

Sleepy: Malaysiakini's survey may not truly reflect the mood of the people, especially the Malays, but it does answer an important question: 'Will Malays be sidelined?' With Dr M and Bersatu, the answer is clearly 'no'.

Anwar was great, but the opposition needs someone like Mahathir to tip the balance for the Malays.

Mafeeah: Based on Malaysiakini's Bahasa Malaysia readers, it tells you that Mahathir has some clout with the Malays.

Anyone who had led Umno has the trust of the rural Malays. That remains a fact, despite you and me not liking or trusting him. You need a Malay to lead in this country.

Headhunter: The poll does reflect the general feeling on the ground. Many would be inclined to believe the Malays, including Umno members, would ultimately abandon ship and flock to join Mahathir.

Nothing short of an exodus would take place if he becomes the next PM or if his party does well in the election.

This includes many current BN leaders who have remained quiet over Najib's wayward ways due to a fear of retribution, basically out of a desire to save their own skin.

Many Malays already see Umno as unsalvageable damaged goods and Mahathir's party offers the right opportunity for them to start afresh.

BN will become like a ghost ship floating eternally in the open sea after the next general election. Malaysia will rise from the ashes if and when that happens.

Quigonbond: So, what's wrong with the poll statistics? Everything is above 50 percent, which is good news. In the end, people will be pragmatic.

We trust those who have left Umno because there is a precedent. Anwar left Umno. PKR (many of its leaders are former Umno leaders) runs Selangor. They introduced Selangor's select committee on competency, accountability and transparency (Selcat).

There is no reason to believe that once they take federal power, they won't put reforms in place. It may not be perfect or pretty at the beginning, but at least they have tried at the state level and it is just a question of scaling up, as opposed to starting from zero.

BN has long run out of excuse that the opposition does not have experience.

Straight-Talk: Give Dr M a second chance; after all, he is the only ex-Umno member who now works with the opposition who has the clout and capability to remove Umno, which is infected with 'cancer', and to introduce reformasi for the good of the country.

Baiyuensheng: A lot of Chinese forget the evil disservice that Mahathir had done to the minorities... it is he who had institutionalised the racist ‘ketuanan Melayu’ apartheid system and policies against the minorities.

It is he who had polarised the populace, which once set in motion has perpetuated and left Malaysians now in the current predicament.

He is a snake with a forked tongue. Cronyism is his forte and he is a racist.

Kingfisher: Mahathir might prove to be the most appropriate person to chair a truth, confessional and reconciliation process the nation so desperately needs to come out of the shackles of abuse of power and corruption that has blighted the nation.

His admission that things had gone seriously adrift in respect to responsible governance under Umno and his willingness to cooperate with virtually all the leaders opposed to BN's continued rule holds much promise to put the nation in good stead.

He obviously has a good memory of the mistakes he himself had made in nation building, and will have the resolve to do well by the nation now.

MTU: The current Malaysian opposition needs to wise up. Mahathir is no saint and neither are all those ex-Umno politicians in Harapan, including PKR de facto leader Anwar.

We, at this juncture, need Mahathir to help Harapan defeat BN and eventually put in place Malaysians of calibre to lead Malaysia. If this is not done, I would expect BN to be back in power after one term, and much stronger.

Gaji Buta: Yes, it may be difficult for some to imagine Mahathir as an 'opposition figure', because we have been drilled into our heads since childhood that the opposition means DAP. The term 'opposition' gives a very negative image, as if they are opposing everything, and are anti-government.

But in reality, they are merely an alternative to the present ruling party. In the US, they don't refer to the Democrats as 'opposition'.

Kleptomania: Only the most lethal combination of Dr M, Anwar plus DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang could remove Najib, and the formation of the new Harapan is Najib's worst nightmare.

With Umno strongholds shaken to the core, there are lots of undercurrents that majority of Umno warlords are abandoning the sinking ship in the run-up to GE14 (the 14th general election), this will mark the end of BN era after six decades.

Dr M is Malaysia's last hope. Dr M, the rakyat will pray for your safety and great health to save this nation. May the force be with you.

Vision2020: The current state of affairs of our beloved nation could not be worse under Mahathir's leadership than the current kleptocratic Umno government led by the shameless and tainted MO1, with all his alleged corrupt practices.

The rakyat are fed up with MO1 and his kleptocratic party, and the abuse of all the government bodies at his disposal.

Keturunan Malaysia: Half a step away from hell is better than a backward step towards hell, or even standing still.

Who else apart from Mahathir, who is not only willing but also deemed to be able to provide that likelihood of at least the said half-step away?- Mkini