UNLIKE the old days, Mahathir 2.0 has little time to restart new confrontations for their own sake. Nor is the prime minister interested in reforms with a long gestation period.

With a short runway of two years in the top job, Dr Mahathir Mohamad has to focus on the twin domestic agenda of tackling Malaysia’s debt crisis and ‎reviving its institutions.

The speed at which the Malaysian government had decided to scrap the high speed rail link between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore has surprised many, with some commentators wondering if the decision was rooted in Dr Mahathir’s historical antipathy towards the city state.

They wondered if the scrapping of the mega project was a precursor of rough times ahead for bilateral ties.

After all, his first tour of duty as the prime minister was notable for Malaysia’s often testy and prickly ties with Singapore.

But the decision to scrap the RM110 billion rail link was not done to spite Singapore, analysts said.

“It’s not about personal vendetta. He is too old for all of that. He wants the country to get back on track before handing over power to Anwar.

“His focus is Malaysia first, not to give problems to Singapore, ” Serina Abdul Rahman from Singapore’s Iseas-Yusof Ishak Institute told Today.

It is understandable why Malaysia watchers on both sides of the Causeway ‎are watching every word uttered by Dr Mahathir. He dictated Malaysia’s foreign policy when he was the prime minister between 1981 and 2003, with the country’s foreign minister mostly playing the role of supporting cast.

Then, he could always be counted on to fire away barbs at Singapore, painting the republic as a calculative and cold neighbour down south. That visceral tone infected all layers of government and to an extent, even ordinary Malaysians adopted a more confrontational approach toward Singapore.

During a recent interview with the Financial Times, he said that Singaporeans may be inspired to follow Malaysians who voted Barisan Nasional out of power for the first time in the nation’s 60-year history.

Singapore has been under one party rule since independence in 1959.

“I think the people of Singapore, like the people in Malaysia, must be tired of having the same government, the same party since independence, ” he quipped.

It was a naughty comment aimed at needling an old adversary. Perhaps even it was a friendly reminder that the man who calls the shots in Malaysia is not going to be sharing durians or golfing with Lee Hsien Loong and other Singapore leaders as Najib Razak.

But the comments were also not meant to signal a downturn in bilateral ties with Singapore.

Dr Mahathir has far too much on his plate already. He works from 8am to past 11pm on a daily basis and not only has to tackle the debt situation but also fill up cabinet posts, appoint officials to vacant senior government positions and strengthen the still young Pakatan Harapan coalition.

As Ooi Kee Beng, executive director of Penang Institute, noted: “Dr Mahathir is a leader who does not have time for protracted reforms or for restarting new confrontations for their own sake, unlike the old days.”

From time to time, his words may sting Singapore and his actions may raise some red flags but Mahathir 2.0 does not have the time or desire to pick a fight with Singapore.

Plus, Najib Razak is filling the role of bogeyman just fine. – May 31, 2018.