PETALING JAYA, June 18 — This seems to be a repeat of August 1981, but Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad now walks a new “highway” based on consensus instead of his own tune like in Frank Sinatra’s My Way.

It was in August 1981 at KL Hilton where Umno had just concluded its annual general assembly (AGM) and Dr Mahathir had just taken the “baton” from outgoing prime minister and Umno president, Tun Hussein Onn. 

In a press conference immediately after the assembly, Dr Mahathir was asked what his first policy was since he was now prime minister and party president.

Without a flinch, Dr Mahathir replied: “Look East Policy”.

Further questioned from the press, Dr Mahathir, who was flanked by deputy president and Deputy Prime Minister Tun Musa Hitam, said he wanted Malaysians to emulate the work culture and ethics of the Japanese.

He continued saying that he wanted the Japanese to transfer their latest technology to Malaysians. A year later, the first Japanese joint-venture with Malaysian company built the Dayabumi complex.

It was both a transfer of technology as well as work culture and ethics, as staff and management did physical exercise together for 30 minutes in the morning before starting work.

Dr Mahathir wanted to build an ethical Malaysian society where commitment and loyalty go hand-in-hand, while embracing the latest technology for development.

Then followed the work culture where Islam was incorporated in the system — adopting and practicing the universally accepted Islamic values such as hard work, willingness to learn, honesty and loyalty.

Along the years, Dr Mahathir attempted to eliminate corruption where he said he would put the fear of God in people to weed out corruption, but apparently many did not seem to fear God after Dr Mahathir left the government.

Then came Proton Saga, the national car that was the pride of the nation, produced in a joint venture with Mitsubishi that later faltered in the wake of global challenges.

Those were Dr Mahathir’s vision and mission where fallouts happened along the way, such as Musa’s resignation as deputy prime minister because he could not get along with the Buy British Last policy and intra-party politicking.

Fast forward one month after Dr Mahathir led Pakatan Harapan to victory against a well-established Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition that has never been defeated since Independence, he made his first overseas trip as Malaysia’s seventh prime minister to Japan.

It is Japan revisited for Dr Mahathir, who became prime minister the second time after he left office in 2003.

He had charted the path for the country to be a developed nation by 2020 but because his predecessors did not follow the plans he charted, he had to start from where they broke off.

In Japan on Monday, he said Malaysia would be a developed nation in 2025, a five-year extension to his original plan of 2020.

At the same time, PKR de facto chief Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who has yet to take an active part in the new government after he received a royal pardon, visited friends in London.

Anwar has been promised the prime minister’s post after Dr Mahathir completes his mission which may take, to quote Dr Mahathir himself, one year, two or more.

Dr Mahathir is completing full circle to complete his vision and the 92-year-old is racing against time to achieve whatever he had set to do.

The scenario is the same as when he first became prime minister in 1981, except this time, he has to do things based on consensus instead of making decisions unilaterally.

Malaysians at large are supportive of Dr Mahathir’s way in charting a new Malaysia that seems different in approach, but the same “highway” where Japan is the first stop.

https://www.malaymail.com/s/1642982/japan-revisited-dr-m-restarts-plans