Monday May 14, 2007,
http://www.thestar.com.myDr Mahathir denies shifting support
TAIPING: Former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has denied shifting his support to the Opposition.
He said his recent criticism was not the result of a shift in his support but was instead to ensure the continuing strength of Umno and the Government.
“The reason behind my criticisms is to see Umno become stronger. If I do not support Umno and keep holding on to its fighting principles, then Umno will become weak,” said Dr Mahathir to reporters after Umno Youth Wing’s ‘Internationalising Malays’ colloquium here yesterday.
Earlier, speaking at the closing of the colloquium, Dr Mahathir advised the Malays to work hard and learn to feel shame from failure, to build a stronger race.
He said this was the only way for the Malays to catch up with the Chinese.
“If you remain lazy, you will never see progress,” he said, adding that the Malays had a tendency to be lazy and find shortcuts to earn a fast buck.
“God gave us this uncanny power that the more we do something, the better we become at it.
“But in order to do this, we must be hardworking,” said Dr Mahathir.
He told the Malays that if they were given business licences, they should make use of them instead of finding other means of earning money from them.
“We have given the Malays many opportunities under the New Economic Policy and some have made use of that positively while some have taken it for granted.”
He added that although many Malays had done well for themselves, the achievements of an individual should not be confused with that of the race as a whole.
“Although the Malays are better off today than before, they are still far behind the Chinese,” he said.
Dr Mahathir also said the only way to banish the culture of bribery was to understand the meaning of shame.
“If we don’t know shame, it (bribery) will become a way of life. It can be stopped but only if we recognise that it can destroy us.”
