Mahathir says he’s not running in next election
KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said yesterday he will not be contesting in the next election, but that will not stop him from fighting against corruption through his new party.
“I want to stay a bit longer but I thought I will serve for a short period,” he told Kyodo News in an interview in his office at the federal administrative capital, Putrajaya. “But I will not be contesting in the 15th election.”
The 95-year-old Mahathir held the record as the world’s oldest head of government when he returned to the top job for a second run after leading a ragtag coalition to an unexpected win in the May 2018 election.
He was the longest-serving prime minister in his first turn, from 1981 to 2003.
Dr Mahathir won the parliamentary seat for the northern constituency of Langkawi, a popular tourist island, in the 2018 election after staying out of office for 14 years.
The nonagenarian returned to active politics in his quest to defeat his predecessor Najib Abdul Razak, whom he described as a thief.
Najib was embroiled in the scandal involving the state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad that he founded and which authorities estimated some $4.5 billion (142 billion baht) has been misappropriated and millions of dollars later found its way into his personal bank accounts.
But Dr Mahathir’s second time in office was short-lived.
His government lasted barely two years before internal fighting led to his coalition breaking up and he resigned on Feb. 24.
He is now on the warpath with his successor, Muhyiddin Yassin whom he has labelled as traitor.
Dr Mahathir believes the new government has taken on the old corrupt ways of the previous National Front coalition government that he toppled in the 2018 election.
“It has unfortunately,” he said.