Dr M is ‘chief of everything’

KUALA LUMPUR: It can be said that all eyes are on Pakatan Harapan’s 100 days in government.

In an opinion piece, The Economist weighed in on Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s “second act”, a reference to his return as head of the government after his first tenure of 22 years from 1981 to 2003.

PH’s win in the 14th General Election (GE14) was described as something that suprised the Dr Mahathir-led coalition.

It was observed that the cabinet had left Dr Mahathir in a position where he had “in effect, become chief of everything”.

“Most members of the cabinet are struggling with what being in power entails. However, Dr Mahathir is an exception.

“This creates a bureaucratic bottleneck as he ponders investigations into 1 Malaysia Development Bhd, diplomacy and ways to boost economic growth. He favours the advice of cronies, as well as of an unelected council of bigwigs selected by himself,” the article said, referring to the Council of Eminent Persons, formed to advise the government.

Dr Mahathir recently announced that the council would remain as he required its assistance.

The article said Dr Mahathir’s “autocratic style can make people jump”.

“Last month, board members of Khazanah Nasional, the country’s sovereign wealth fund, resigned after he criticised their investment strategies (he said they were not doing enough to help firms owned by Malays).”

It said Dr Mahathir was fond of joking about his allegedly dictatorial ways in the past, adding that despite the “self-deprecating jokes”, he was reluctant to share power with others.

On reforms, it said it would be unlikely to see radical reforms in racial policies.

“The ruling coalition hangs together in part because all of its parties have agreed to uphold this system. Politicians fear a backlash from Malay voters should their privileges be curtailed.”

However, it said, approval ratings for the new administration remained high.