Mahathir : Successor betrayed trust

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Malaysia's Mahathir: Successor Betrayed Trust

PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia (AP)--Former Malaysian leader Mahathir Mohamad on Wednesday accused his handpicked successor, who reversed many of his decisions, of betraying his trust and coming close to stabbing him in the back.
In some of his harshest criticism against Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Mahathir said he "tolerated it as much as possible" and could no longer keep his grievances quiet.

Mahathir, who retired in 2003 after 22 years in power, said he was particularly hurt by claims that he had "finished all government money and the government was bankrupt" because of mega-infrastructure projects that marked his time in office.

"Having chosen him as my successor, I expect a reasonable degree of gratefulness," Mahathir told reporters.

"I'm in the habit of choosing the wrong people," Mahathir said, adding that in his lifetime, he has helped many people, "only for them to stab me in the back."

Asked if Abdullah has stabbed him in the back, Mahathir replied: "Minor bruises."

However, Mahathir wouldn't openly say whether he regretted choosing Abdullah to succeed him instead of current Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, whom Mahathir claimed had obtained more votes in the Cabinet to inherit the leadership.

"One cannot tell what a person would do when the person is out of your control. I thought I had made the right choice," Mahathir said.

He said he wasn't campaigning within the ruling United Malays National Organization to unseat Abdullah.

"I'm not capable of doing that," Mahathir said. "I cannot have him removed. I'm not going around campaigning to people...(but) I would be failing in my duty as an ordinary citizen, as ex-PM, if I did not direct my attention" to issues affecting national interests.

Mahathir acknowledged that he had promised not to interfere with the administration following his retirement - but he claimed Abdullah had also pledged to continue his policies.

"But not only did the incoming government not do what was promised, in fact the incoming government reversed many of the decisions," Mahathir said. "I have a right to comment....I will have to stick my neck out to be chopped."

Mahathir cited a list of complaints against Abdullah's government, including its move to scrap Mahathir's plan to build a new bridge to neighboring Singapore. Abdullah announced the decision in April, saying Malaysians couldn't accept preconditions imposed by the city-state.

Mahathir also slammed the government for its auto import policy, which he has said benefited a select group of well-linked businessmen, and for slowing down construction ventures in Putrajaya, Malaysia's administrative capital, which were among Mahathir's pet projects.

Mahathir said he disagreed with the government that it has no more money for big projects, "when I know fully well that the government has never been richer."

"To say the government has no money because the previous PM spent all the money is not supported by facts," Mahathir said. "My contention is that the government has plenty of money."