KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 12 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad placed racial equality as top on his list of priorities to develop the country if he were given a second shot at running the country as prime minister.
Dr Mahathir told songstress Datuk Siti Nurhaliza on the first episode of the latter’s new TV talk show “Siti” on Astro Ria tonight that despite having relinquished his job for over seven years now, he still had “many ideas” on how to improve development in Malaysia.
“I have many ideas that can help to develop the country, especially to achieve racial unity.
“But these plans can only be carried out by those in power... because I am not in power, all I can do is try to influence the present leaders,” he said.
The outspoken octogenarian explained that now that he was no longer in government, his only avenue to affect changes in the country was by speaking with present government leaders and writing in his blog chedet.co.cc.
“My wish if I were to be PM of this country again, which is unlikely, is to ensure that Malaysia achieves its objective to achieve developed nation status,” he said.
Dr Mahathir (picture) said this when responding to a question from a member of the audience who had asked the former prime minister what he would do if he were given the opportunity to run Malaysia again.
The country’s longest serving prime minister was the first guest on Siti’s maiden television programme.
During his 20-minute segment with the popular songstress, Dr Mahathir spoke of his early years growing up as the son of a school principal and strict disciplinarian, his passion for reading, his eating habits and the secret to his youthfulness.
The still-influential leader said that as a child, he had been “surrounded” by books and had naturally picked up the passion for reading, a past time he enjoys until today.
“My parents gave me guidance on how to lead a good life and how to achieve success through education,” he said.
He noted that the many youths today no longer turn to reading as a hobby due to the advent of other distractions like the Internet and social media.
“During my time, there was no TV, just the gramophone and even then, we rarely use it. Now, it is so easy, you only have to press a button and you can see the world.
“That is why we do not seek for knowledge from books these days and perhaps that is why we do not see many youths reading,” he said.
Dr Mahathir added that to encourage the habit, parents needed to convince and force their children to read more until they were able to enjoy reading on their own.
“In my opinion, in the beginning, some force is needed. But after that, once they begin to enjoy books, they will start to become more attracted to books on their own,” he said.
When asked for a message to the youth, Dr Mahathir said the young needed to appreciate the efforts of the nation’s founding fathers to achieve independence for Malaysia.
He noted that more often than not, such “blessings” were taken for granted by those who did not witness the struggle achieve independence.
“The youths who were born after Merdeka, they take Merdeka and freedom as a natural phenomenon that does not need to be worked at or defended.
“Because of that, we do not truly appreciate these blessings that we have received. But if we do not feel indebted in any way, do not appreciate and are not thankful, then we would not be successful human beings,” he said.
Dr Mahathir later laughed when asked of the secret to his youth and revealed that he always believed in moderation when it came to his eating habits.
“And it’s not that we should stop eating when we are full, we should stop once we feel that the food is terribly tasty. That was what my mother taught me,” he said, smiling.
Dr Mahathir, now 85, was Malaysia’s prime minister for 22 years from 1981 to 2003 but remains today a significant and influential figure in local politics even after his retirement.
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