DR Mahathir Mohamad today reiterated that he must abide by his promise to only serve as an interim prime minister, despite calls for him to continue to hold the post until the next general election.

In his adjournment speech at the Bersatu annual general assembly in Putrajaya today, Dr Mahathir said prior to the 14th general election (GE14), the then opposition’s  goal was to bring down Najib Razak, which could not have been done without the support of many parties.

“Once, we were the opposition and we formed a party and we hoped the party to gain the support from the Malays. However, if we can only garner the support of the Malays without other parties, I’m not sure we can win,” he said.

He said the GE14 victory could only have been achieved by working with other parties.

“We have been negotiating with our colleagues and one of the conditions imposed was that this prime minister –  also their former foe – would only serve as an interim prime minister.

“The most important thing then was (unseating) Najib. For that reason, we have to sacrifice. I need to sacrifice and to accept the condition because the main thing is not to be prime minister but to bring down Najib,” he said.

Dr Mahathir, who is also Bersatu chairman, also admitted that it first appeared awkward for two fierce enemies to be seen sitting and working together, but over time, it became normal.

“But Alhamdulillah, because we were willing to accept these terms, we won. We did not expect that we would win. Previously, when asked on the chances of us winning, my answer would be 50-50.

“Until the end, I wasn’t sure that we could win. But Alhamdulillah, we won. The result of our sacrifices,” he said.

Delegates at the party’s three-day annual general assembly that ended today had called for Dr Mahathir to continue serving as prime minister until the 15th general election.

Dr Mahathir also said that some people believed that the two-year period serving as prime minister was too short to be able govern the country effectively. 

To this, Dr Mahathir said people were entitled to their own opinions.

The prime minister said the matter was not discussed with PKR president Anwar Ibrahim when they met over dinner. However, he did not say when the dinner with Anwar, who is the prime minister-in-waiting, had taken place.

“I think he feels comfortable that he will succeed me, maybe in two years, I don’t know… I’m not going to be the prime minister until the next election,” he said.

For now, he said the PH government remained stable.

“As far as I can see, we are very stable. Investors are very happy with our performance, similarly with our assurances for both the domestic and foreign investors,” he said.

“Of course, we are not stable in the eyes of journalists because if we were (stable), there would be nothing to report,” he quipped. – Bernama, December 30, 2018.