KUALA LUMPUR – Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was economical with words when congratulating newly sworn-in prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today.
In a brief Twitter post, Dr Mahathir wrote “I congratulate Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on his appointment as the 10th prime minister of Malaysia.
“Selamat maju jaya (good luck),” said the 97-year-old politician, who tasted defeat in the recently concluded 15th general election, only the second time he has lost an election in his illustrious political career.
Anwar was a deputy prime minister in Dr Mahathir’s cabinet in the 1990s and was due to succeed his mentor.
However, things turned sour between the two in 1998 when Anwar mounted a challenge against Dr Mahathir, who had brought him into Umno when he was a young student leader. Anwar was sacked as deputy prime minister and Umno deputy president post over allegations of corruption and sodomy, charges which he had claimed as politically motivated.
This led to the famous “Reformasi” movement, giving birth to PKR, which is now the backbone of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition.
The duo teamed-up once again in the 14th general election in 2018 to take on the then-prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, with Dr Mahathir leading the charge for PH in place of Anwar who was still in prison after the Federal Court upheld his second sodomy conviction.
In that election, Najib-led Barisan Nasional suffered a historic election defeat and PH rose to power.
Anwar was given a royal pardon a week after Dr Mahathir formed the PH government.
Although he was promised the prime minister’s post in a two-year transition after Dr Mahathir, the plan fell apart when the PH government collapsed following the Sheraton Move.
In the 15th general election, Dr Mahathir who defended the Langkawi seat came in second-last in a five-cornered fight, and lost his election deposit. – The Vibes, November 25, 2022
