Dr M: No, I’m not noble enough for Nobel Prize

Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today laughed off a suggestion that he be considered for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

"Nobel Prize winner? I am not so noble," he joked at a press conference.

An online Change.org petition, which was launched on May 26, called for Mahathir to be considered for the prize, in recognition of his leading Pakatan Harapan to victory over BN in the May 9 polls.

The petition gained some traction, amassing 101,837 signatures as of this evening. 

Netizen Alexandria Abishegam, who started the petition, said Mahathir had brought a new dawn for Malaysia.

"The fact that he has also openly admitted his own faults and apologised for his mistakes of the past makes him truly a 'Giant of a Man' and a leader to emulate."

"Mahathir is akin to being the 'Nelson Mandela' of Malaysia," he wrote in the petition.

The Star quoted Marina Mahathir as saying that her father was not a person who expected to be awarded for his efforts.

“My dad says he doesn’t deserve such a thing," she said.

Meanwhile, Free Malaysia Today reported that Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) disagreed with the move to lobby Mahathir for Nobel Prize.

Its spokesperson Chew Chuan Yang said the premier's electoral success could not erase his past mistakes of compromising the state institutions during his rule. - Mkini