YOURSAY | It drives home the message, ‘Take care of old relationships and they will endure.’

Dr M: I gave his father the car, no breakdown after 34 years

Clever Voter: The first generation of Protons had Mitsubishi engines. Mistakes, including poorer quality, came with localisation when the company started to be complacent and greedy, especially when they enjoyed an almost monopoly.

It was a joke when their trading arm made more money by selling extras, including stickers. Eventual competition made them lose market share.

Have we learned our lesson? Not really, as we expect the return of the rent-seeker culture - then it’s back to square one.

Kangkung: Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, that's the worst sales pitch ever. No breakdown after 34 years? Did the Johor sultan use the car like the average Malaysian? Did he drive it on a daily basis?

Please, in this new Malaysia, the last thing we want is government propaganda. We had enough of that for the past 61 years.

Chrysḗ Chersónēsos: Of course, there would be no breakdown if you do not use it every day and you don’t pack to the max in the back boot. And if you drive it once a year, it will last for something like 1,000 years.

Anyway, it is an iconic and historic car. It marks our industrialisation.

Anonymous: I have a Proton Saga still on the road but it costs a fortune to maintain and insurance and road tax are hard to get and expensive as it is more than 20 years old.

But it is a solid car and it is able to withstand hard knocks as it is not Milo tin material.

Anonymous_3b6c1f0c: The first Proton was value for money. It’s sad how times have changed and that now Proton’s value is dependent on what the foreigner does.

The trouble with this country is we don’t harness the real talent that is available and rather place our trust and the reins of corporate power into the hands of loyalists who don’t have the same vision nor the ability to execute.

Vijay47: What a nice display of "kiss and make up" by two old friends, one driving the other to the airport.

And before I get lugged in for sedition by that ever-vigilant inspector-general of police (IGP), let me hasten to explain that "kiss and make up" does not carry an unsavoury connotation, rather it merely describes a strained relationship of the past being pushed into history, and “old” does not mean “aged”; in the above context it suggests close or intimate.

My only hope is that when they stopped to pay the toll, the Proton’s power windows were working properly. Otherwise, it would have been a right royal embarrassment.

Fair Minded Senior Citizen: The symbolism is well taken - take care of old relationships and they will endure. Good for both of you – ‘jangan lari dan jangan gaduh’ (don’t run away and don’t fight).

Sultan Ibrahim drives Dr M to airport in late father's Proton Saga

Headhunter: That's a very nice touch on the part of the sultan. I'm sure that it must have melted the ice between them.

For the sake of the country, it's better for them to have a cordial relationship.

Albert Ponniah: Mahathir and the Johor sultan have put on some salute-worthy style in their e 'empat mata' meeting.

Honour and pleasure are earned by characteristic conduct like 'respect given, respect earned'. Anwar Ibrahim has to learn some of this and show that he has it if he wants to be PM.

Jasmine: A four-eyes-only meeting? So the public will only be told of matters deemed necessary for its ears, decided and agreed to by both men?

But I must admit that the picture posted is a good PR effort. Two master craftsmen at their best behaviour.

Hang Babeuf: Next time, can we have someone pedal Mahathir to Senai in a rickshaw?

Sultan Ibrahim and Dr M agree to keep things 'frank, not hidden'

David Dass: The sultans are an important part of our constitutional democracy.

It is good that Mahathir met with the Johor sultan to resolve issues between them or at least reach some kind of understanding as to how they would communicate with each other on issues that concern the nation.

The sultan driving the prime minister in a Proton gifted by the prime minister to his late father many years ago sealed the peace pact between them. It is a good outcome.

Abd.Karim: Yes, this is the best thing that has happened. Both should now work hard to clamp down hard on extremists and tin kosongs.

Malaysia can be a progressive, healthy multiracial nation.

Lipdah: Will Pulau Kukup be returned to the people? I hope it was discussed and the right decision made - that is, to return the same. This is important.

Hplooi: Indeed, I hope the issue of Pulau Kukup is discussed in a frank and forthright manner too.

Pakatan4Life: The sultan is a true gentleman.

When Pakatan Harapan won GE14, the sultan was the first to announce that the rakyat’s choice must be respected, even though Johor, which is Umno's strongest state, fell like 10 pins.

The sultan accepted the people's choice and has moved on. Daulat Tuanku.

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