LETTER | "For me, to say I want to go to sleep and retire and prepare for my afterlife, I think that is very selfish."

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, The Straits Times – 22 January 2017

This statement is the reflection of ayahanda Tun’s true character. For many of us, he is the father of this nation. His love for this nation is unprecedented. Even though he retired in 2003, he made a comeback in 2018 as the seventh Prime Minister of Malaysia at the age of 93 years. He made history. In their twilight years, most people would have a ‘quiet’ life but not ayahanda.

The biggest question is why ayahanda had to return to active politics at his age to ‘save’ Malaysia. What are the factors which triggered him to take such a drastic decision?

At the time, Malaysia’s reputation was at stake because of the kleptocratic regime. Economic, social, and political factors triggered him to make a comeback. But, the main focal point of his return is the damaged reputation of this country.

He could not have accepted that the reputation and wealth of this country were plundered by some unscrupulous elements within the kleptocratic regime. His determination to save this country from the kleptocrats is incredible. We believe he is not an ordinary politician or person per se. Most of his comrades have either passed away or retired but he is still on the battlefield. He is fighting against the odds and his fighting spirit will never die off.

But, why is ayahanda so special, and why does he still want to fight?

We have seen many political leaders who lost in the battlefields and went on to become corporate leaders or hold positions within government agencies. But he became the prevalent instrument when the opposition won the election in 2018.

In his book, A New Deal for Asia (1999), he stated that there is a new form of colonialism. This is known as economic colonialism. He warned that the largest economic countries will steal the future of young countries like Malaysia. In the past decade, his prediction is already materialised as we are losing crucial assets to global economic giants. During the kleptocratic regime, many of our country’s assets were sold to foreign powers. We still remembered his role in the seizure of Guthrie in the early 1980s.

Ayahanda is greatly misunderstood by his own people. In our opinion, he is not properly recognised as the greatest leader of Malaysia.

Other countries like Thailand, Palestine, and Japan adore him for his leadership. In his own country, he is being labeled as a dictator. He is not dissuaded by this. His sole focus is on the progress of this nation. He desires to uplift this nation as a developed country and wants the world community to respect its sovereignty.

Although ayahanda does not appreciate any kind of recognition during his tenure as the Prime Minster, we should rightfully acknowledge his contributions to this nation.

Even though some of his statements can be considered as controversial but those speeches were greatly misconstrued. He is a nationalist. He is also a visionary man. He believes unity is the key factor for the progress of this nation. Even though some of us are still suspicious that he still holds old traits but we doubt it greatly. Again, we have to emphasise that his fondness for this nation is absolute.

Some of his crucial policies and programs failed because the people who were entrusted did not execute it sincerely. The transformation that ayahanda wanted to achieve for his people has been sabotaged by unscrupulous people. These people have self-indulgent attitudes and a total disregard for the welfare of ordinary Malaysians like us.

Ayahanda wants this country to be in the league of the emerging Asian economic tigers. He wants this nation to progress further. Unfortunately, his vision was dented this February. Some of his inner circle have betrayed him. Even though he and his coalition were rightfully voted in as the government of Malaysia but that mandate was undermined by defectors.

It is irrelevant to discuss the incidents of the pre-downfall Pakatan Harapan (PH) government in February. The people and young politicians have learned the hard lessons from this appalling episode. The traitors have been identified. They will be removed from the national agenda in the future by the voters. Therefore, it will help the future government to take some proactive measures to avoid such episodes to be repeated again.

Ayahanda still commands good support from us. He understands us well and he can execute his grand plan without any aggravation. All he needs now is collective support to rectify the current calamity.

We are willing to support his cause which is actually ours. The biggest setback for ayahanda is always trusting the wrong people.

PH got the mandate to rule this country because of its manifesto. At this stage, it is viable to revisit PH’s election manifesto and its agreement between the coalition members.

Ayahanda must help to mobilise the coalition members in a single direction so that PH becomes the ruling government again. Once this goal is achieved, then a clear succession plan must be in place in accordance with the pre-14th general election’s agreement of PH members.

The future Prime Minister and cabinet ministers are going to carry on your vision for this country. They will be on the reformation platform and guide the agenda to make this nation a developed nation.

Ayahanda, this will be your final battle for this country. Your contribution and commitments, we will never forget. We sometimes get very angry and upset with your former comrades who had mistreated you with wicked remarks. Their current prominence in politics very much depended on your significant contributions. They conveniently forgot and committed treachery against you.

Sometimes, some leaders have made mistakes. That is inevitable in politics. If they acknowledge and want to rectify those mistakes, as citizens of this nation we should support them.

The future of this country is imperative. This nation must free and must be liberated from the kleptocrats. Ayahanda is taking the initiative to unite us against the kleptocrats. The question is whether we are willing to be part of this initiative or not?

In a nutshell, ayahanda is a great statesman and leader for all Malaysians. Unfortunately, he always will be misunderstood for his self-sacrificing intention to make Malaysia a great nation. For us, he is our father figure, friend, teacher, and charismatic leader. We should always treasure him because he is a role model for us to follow.

He once said, "In my years, I had the opportunity to observe peoples and countries. I see some countries doing well, others failing, and my analysis of things is that whether you fail or succeed is a function of your value system."

Thank you, ayahanda.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.