IT was only a matter of time before former finance minister Daim Zainuddin showed his hand and publicly endorsed Pakatan Harapan.

Why?

Because for more than a year, Daim has been the go-to-guy for the opposition. A steady stream of Bersatu, Amanah, and DAP politicians have sought the billionaire’s counsel.

He has given them ideas on strategy, made suggestions on where they should contest, and even scolded them on occasions when they allowed pettiness to cloud the bigger issue of building a coalition strong enough to take on Barisan Nasional.

Daim also suggested that unlike BN, which was spending millions on each constituency, Bersatu candidates should look to spend no more than RM400,000.

Those who have met him say that he has been scathingly critical of Najib Razak’s economic policies, saying that the country is headed for tough times with government debt reaching troubling levels.

The man, who earned the moniker of economic czar during the Mahathir administration, also believes that China’s mammoth infrastructure deals are not true investments and will be a massive burden for the country’s future generations.

He said that when the time was right, he would make public his support for Dr Mahathir Mohamad and PH.

That day was today.

Visiting his home state of Kedah, he said: “We have to remember that our votes this time are for the future of our children and grandchildren. They are important. Don’t make a mistake.

“We must choose Dr Mahathir to solve our problems. Don’t make a mistake. Pick PH. Our future lies with PH.

“Insya Allah on May 9, we will go out and vote for PH. On May 10, we will have a new government.”

Daim has built a bit of a reputation as being an astute observer of politics. In 2008, he predicted that BN would lose five states.

Five years later, the man who devours statistics and surveys said that BN would be unable to regain the two-thirds’ control of Parliament ‎it lost in 2004.

Daim became the second senior Umno leader to declare public support for the opposition, following his former cabinet colleague, Rafidah Aziz.

Both can expect to be taken to the cleaners by Umno politicians and the mainstream media. Daim still has many business interests here and could pay a heavy price for his call to Malaysians to support PH.

But at age 80 and with a kidney ailment, he must have done a cost-benefit analysis and figured that there was not much that Najib and gang can do to him.

Or perhaps he truly believes that Dr Mahathir and friends are on the cusp of victory. – May 1, 2018.