DR Mahathir Mohamad today said that future prime minister’s should not play the dual role of finance minister in order to avoid abuse of power, adding that he held the finance minister portfolio during his premiership as there were no suitable candidates.

Dr Mahathir, who was finance minister twice during his 22-year rule as prime minister, said he merely held the position as an interim minister while waiting for a replacement.

“When I was a prime minister, there were only two times when I held the post as a finance minister. One was when we were waiting for a better candidate to hold the post.

“When a finance minister is dropped or can no longer serve, we will take some time to find a good candidate, and during that time I will take over as the finance minister, which will include preparing a budget for the year,” Dr Mahathir said at his weekly “Policy Talk” session on his Facebook page.

Dr Mahathir was previously the finance minister from September 1998 to January 1999 and June 2001 to November 2003, replacing Anwar Ibrahim and Daim Zainuddin respectively.

Dr Mahathir retired in 2003, and following the controversy over 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), quit Umno in 2016.

He now heads the Pakatan Harapan (PH) opposition pact as its prime minister candidate.

In his talk today, Dr Mahathir said that unlike other prime ministerial candidates, he had the unique advantage of having 22 years of experience which he claims will help “solve most of the problems… left by Prime Minister Najib Razak”.

“For a prime minister that is new, of course it is hard for two years, but for me, I am old and have more experience so I don’t need to relearn it.”

Dr Mahathir also reiterated PH’s stand that the pact will abolish the existing goods and services tax (GST) and possibly replace it with the Sales and Services Tax (SST), if voted into government.

“That is why I think there is a need to abolish GST, there is a possibility to bring back sales tax and it is enough for the government to pay its usual things and for development.

“When there was no GST, we can build the North-South Expressway, a new airport, the Penang bridge and all sorts of things. Our railway had double tracking with electricity; all without GST.”

The PH chairman added that Malaysia does not need to have a large cabinet to govern the nation and PH would only require fewer than 20 ministers in the cabinet.

“Regarding the PH cabinet, we see now that the ministers are added not based on need but to give a job and a salary to a minister that is not needed.

“I was told that PH wishes to reduce to fewer than 20 ministers, not until 35 ministers and I think it is enough to govern the country,” Dr Mahathir said. – February 7, 2018.