There is no guarantee that a good policy will last forever if a leader or a government is changed, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad pointed out.

However, Mahathir (photo), said the people have the responsibility to topple the leader who implements bad policies.

“When I made the decision to resign in 2002, I believed that all the plans would be successful and would be continued so that we can achieve Vision 2020 and become a developed nation.

“But, after I resigned, what I saw was changes in terms of policies because of new leaders who wanted to introduce their own new ways," he said during a question-and-answer session at an event in Kuala Lumpur last night.

“One deterioration after another happened due to changes in leadership. So, we can’t guarantee that a good policy will stay, even with a new leadership.

“If a policy introduced by a certain leader is bad, it is our responsibility to topple the leader democratically,” Mahathir was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times.

He noted that a nation’s success relied on its citizens’ characters, values and knowledge.

An intelligent society always chooses a leader who does not think only for himself or herself, Mahathir said.

“It is the people who have to decide if they want to be in a great country or they can just think about themselves and destroy it.

“Well, if that happens (in the future), I won’t be around. I’ll be watching from up above, flying around,” the prime minister added, in jest.