Dr M: Pakatan rule will herald 'failed Islamic state'

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today warned navy personnel not to vote emotionally as having the wrong people rule the country would result in a failed Islamic state.

Speaking to about 2,000 navy personnel at the Lumut naval base, Mahathir said Malaysia is internationally recognised as a successful Islamic state because 60 percent of the population are Muslims.

He said voters have the right to choose, but should not be swayed by emotions or hatred, or they risk electing those who can't run the country.

“If we fail to rule our country properly, it’s for certain that the public as well as the international community will think that Malaysia is another failed Islamic state,” he said.
Disappointment expressed
The former premier expressed his disappointment that of the 50 countries recognised as Islamic states, not one is seen as a developed nation despite being some being rich in oil.

Fortunately, he said, Malaysia is seen as a model of a developing nation in the Islamic world.

Thus, he said the BN government must be given credit for being able to provide peace, justice and development to the country.

However, if the country is not governed properly, the Muslims who run the country will be blamed and this will tarnish the image of Islam, he added.

Mahathir also warned that Muslim Malays will become the minority in this country, just like in Singapore and Thailand, if the community is split due to political differences.

He said that once Muslim Malays are aligned to different political parties, they will be unable to defend their wellbeing from the majority in the country.

"If we unite, our strength is 60 percent in the country as a whole, but if we split, our percentage definitely will split as well, it won't be 60 percent.

"The Malays will become a small party, but under the democratic system it's impossible for a small party to rule the country alone. So they will be forced to ask for help from others," he said, adding that the welfare of Muslims in this country will be jeopardised by the majority.
Identity lost
Citing Singapore and Thailand as examples, Mahathir said that the Malay minority in both countries had lost their identity and culture as they don't know how to speak the Malay language.

"If we don't govern our own race in our own country, trust me, our language, customs and identity will be gone," he stressed.

Hence, he defended the system practiced by BN, saying that the 14 component parties, representing each of the races in the country is to take care of their own community.

"Although the people in our country are different in terms of race, language, culture and political understanding, our country is peaceful and happy.

"This is because the rulers are not greedy. We don't want to grab all the power.

"As our country has different races, we decided to share the power and wealth in the county, that's why we established a political party named Barisan Nasional, formerly known as the Alliance," he said.

When asked what would happen should the opposition win the general election with a two-third majority, Mahathir said maybe they will amend the constitution to the disadvantage of the people.

He claimed that they will implement meritocracy and those who are not good enough will be sidelined.

"They will not get any chance at all. (You) don't hope to be the navy or air force chief or a vice chancellor in a university in Malaysia.

"We are not against meritocracy, but we also consider giving chances to those who are good, but not the best, this is our way," he added.