No matter how hard Dr Mahathir Mohamad tries to whitewash his dark record over Operation Lallang, he will surely fail because there will be many more truth-seeking historians on stand-by to put the record straight.

At least one fact stands out: Mahathir now seems ashamed of his role in Ops Lalang. And so he should be after more than two decades of trying to justify the dastardly act.

But can he wriggle out of the responsibility even though former inspector-general of police Hanif Omar has so graciously come forward to claim credit for it ?