Is Mahathir baffled by senility?

The signs of senility displayed by Dr Mahathir Mohamad are worrying.

In an exclusive interview by Malaysiakini on why he must be nominated for prime minister and Anwar Ibrahim the deputy prime minister by Pakatan Harapan Plus for six months before handing over the baton to the latter, he gave his rationale as follows.

The prerequisite for forming a government is that Harapan Plus must have the support of Malay members of parliament, for which the followings are essential:

• A Malay party is part of Pakatan Harapan Plus.
• Harapan Plus must not be seen as a multi-racial outfit.

In the first place, aren’t there many Malay MPs in Harapan Plus? And didn’t the multi-racial Harapan win the election in 2018 and ruled the country for 22 months until Mahathir abruptly resigned without consultation with Harapan?

So, why should it be any different now just because the issue of Mahathir’s nomination as PM crops up? And how would his nomination as prime minister alter the racial outlook of Harapan Plus?

How would that outlook change when he passes the baton to Anwar in six months’ time? Wouldn’t it be just the same? And should it follow that Mahathir must not pass the premiership to Anwar then?

The word is his bond?

Mahathir also said he needed to be PM for six months to show the way how the premiership is run before his successor takes over.

Has he forgotten that Anwar had been his deputy PM for five years while he was PM during his first premiership? Why is there a need to spend another half year to undergo the same process again?

On skepticism over his promise to hand over power to Anwar in six months’ time, Mahathir said that his word is his bond and that he had never reneged on his pledge.

Has he forgotten that he had just broken his undertaking to pass the baton to Anwar on ground that Anwar was unfit to be PM, and it was that broken promise which led to the fall of the Harapan government?

Had he honoured his pledge to be only an interim PM and promptly passed the premiership to Anwar when the latter became qualified, wouldn’t Harapan had been well on his way to build the New Malaysia as promised, instead of the current predicament it has found itself in?

Must he repeat the same drama again?

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KIM QUEK is the author of the banned book “The March to Putrajaya”, and best seller “Where to, Malaysia?” - Mkini