Dr M: I didn't expect Najib to do worse than Pak Lah

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad admitted today he did not expect Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to do worse in this general election than his predecessor Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in 2008.

Mahathir, a vociferous critic of the Pak Lah administration, said that he thought Najib would have done at least better than Abdullah, who led BN to take 140 parliamentary seats in the 12th general election.

Najib, despite having promised Umno and BN supporters that he would deliver a two-thirds majority, could only lead the coalition to 133 parliamentary seats, seven short of Abdullah's achievement in 2008.

While not giving his final verdict on Najib, Mahathir (left) said Najib might face some criticism and rejection from within Umno.

"Of course, the people will question his capacity and his strategies," Mahathir added.

"Constitutionally, he remains as the head of government as long as Umno supports him," Mahathir added.

Mahathir said that he had campaigned for the Najib administration as well, with the belief that they would do better than 2008, though he did not expect BN to obtain a two-thirds majority.

'BN must learn from its mistakes'

He warned that BN must learn from its mistakes in the 2013 polls in the next election.

"This can become worse if BN doesn't learn from its mistakes," he stressed.

He, however, appeared apprehensive about the notion of DAP joining hands with BN to represent the Chinese in the government since MCA has decided not to take up government posts.

"That's up to Umno and DAP, whether they want to participate in the government. But I don't think DAP will, they have always projected MCA as Umno lackeys, now they will be seen as one if they join," he noted.

"DAP is a party that will always want to be in a position of dominance," he added.