From prisoner to PM, Malaysia’s Anwar had long ride to top
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 27 — The euphoria of winning the presidential election of 2006 was dampened by the public’s scepticism towards his “soft” position on the Malay community while Anwar was still a federal minister, former minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, or Muhyiddin, told a press conference after casting his vote Tuesday.
He was asked to comment on how the public viewed the first prime minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, saying “I think those were the years when Dr. Mahathir was a politician first. Then, he became a PM. There were two years of his PM when he was perceived as a politician and one when he was viewed as a true statesman.”
“But the last few years, he has proven to be a statesman,” he said. “Now, we are going to see a lot of changes in Malaysia.”.
Muhyiddin said Dr Mahathir’s leadership was good for the country and that there were a lot of positive signs towards him.
Asked to comment on the Anwar government’s stance on the Malay community, Muhyiddin said “I don’t think about the Malays. For me, it’s not that important. That’s all for the Malays. That’s politics for us. I am talking about the Malays. When there was change in Perak state, the change was seen in the Malay community as well.”
He said he thought Anwar would have benefited better from a leadership that had better plans for the country, which “I think the people would have accepted well.”
“I think Anwar was a good prime minister, but he also needs a lot more time,” he said of the Anwar administration.
Dr Mahathir, who is currently on a two-week tour of Europe, returned to Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday, saying he was delighted with Anwar’s victory.
His comment about the Malays could be interpreted as an indication of where he stands on their future development and acceptance into Malaysian society.
The Anwar government has remained consistent in its support to the Malays, despite its public criticisms of them
