Mahathir.

Fri 11.7.2025

100 years old yesterday.

That itself is remarkable.

Looking at him, live on the media, moving about, mixing around, driving, and speaking, slower now, but still clear and clever, and remembering President Jimmy Carter who died recently at exactly 100, wheelchair-bound, not saying anything worthy, looking weak and helpless - no one can not appreciate all of this.

I came in direct contact with Mahathir on 29.11.1993, when he came to officiate MISC's brand new haulage company's yard at the North Port, Port Kelang. I was the GM. As part of the morning's ceremony, he boarded one of our also brand-new truck bearing the number plate "2021". I chose this truck. We didn't have a "2020". I pointed out the plate number to him, not saying anything. He got the message instantly. "The year after" he said, smiling to me. Of course I was referring to his then much publicized "Vision 2020". Wow, I said to myself.

All we Malaysians have to do is look at his tenure as the country's political leader and just mark out the institutions given birth to in that period, you know, Universiti Kebangsaan, Bank Islam etc. Look at the country's economy. Look at the international episodes that heaped praise for the country. Dig out the private stories, eg a foreigner who said there was this great Asian leader who's doing something brave and wonderful in the Middle East, and he was referring to Mahathir.

Not posting this blog, miniscule as it is, would be a sin for me. There's much more under all those records avaiable, both here in this country and internationally. Let somebody bring all out, good and bad, and see the man Mahathir.

The "All quiet on the Western Front" right now in the Malaysia news is a sad reflection, not on Mahathir, but on us all. 

...................................................................................