Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak is elated that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad is enjoying the fruits of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group's purchase of 49 percent of Proton which occurred under his watch.

"I am happy to see Proton and Geely fulfil their agreement and announce the sale of Proton cars (in China) witnessed by Mahathir, who appeared very happy, even though just a year ago he criticised me through his writings, saying he would no longer be proud of Proton after Geely became a partner.

"If a decision was not made (to sell Proton shares) last year, there would be nothing for Mahathir to witness at Geely's (headquarters) in China yesterday," he wrote on his Facebook page.

Najib was commenting on Mahathir witnessing a joint venture agreement between Proton and Geely in Hangzhou yesterday, laying the groundwork for the carmaker's entry into the Chinese market.

In his post, he recalled how Mahathir had last year cried over the Geely-Proton deal and accused him of selling off national pride.

When remarking on the deal last May, Mahathir said his "child" was gone.

"I am a sissy. I cry even if Malaysians are dry-eyed. My child is lost. And soon my country. Please excuse me," he had written on his blog.

Now as prime minister, Mahathir’s tune has changed significantly yesterday, as he expressed hope for a Proton electric car jointly produced with Geely.

Najib added that the Pakatan Harapan administration has also changed their tune on other China projects in Malaysia that they previously condemned, like Forest City and the Melaka Gateway.

Mahathir was previously fiercely critical of the Forest City development in Iskandar, Johor, calling it a sale of Malaysia's sovereignty.

"Even though BN and I were subject to heavy slander at the time, I am happy that steps by the previous BN government have been proven as measures that benefit the country and its people," Najib said in his post.