MRT would not have happened without me, says Dr Mahathir

Dr Mahathir Mohamad says Prime Minister Najib Razak wouldn't known what to do if he had not started public transport projects. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Hasnoor Hussain, July 23, 2017.

AS Prime Minister Najib Razak basks in the glow of the recently completed second phase of Mass Rapid Transit system, Dr Mahathir Mohamad moved to rain on the parade by claiming that the new public transport system was merely a continuation the projects under his administration.

Speaking at the CheDet club Aidilfitri Open House today, Dr Mahathir said Najib would not have completed the public transport projects if he had not started it.

"He was just continuing (the public transport projects) that I started. Without me starting it, he (Najib) wouldn't know what to do."

Dr Mahathir said Najib would be at his wits end in completing the LRT 1 & 2 Extension and MRT 1 projects if he had not started them.


When Dr Mahathir was prime minister, he initiated four public transport projects – the KL Monorail line, the Putra LRT line, the STAR LRT line and the Intrakota Bus Service – all of which were given to private companies via concessions and then eventually ran into financial or managerial difficulties.

The Bersatu chairman also said he was more than willing to accept any representatives of Najib for the "Nothing to Hide" forum that is hosted by Bersatu's youth wing.


"The prime minister is not letting anyone to come (to the debate), what is there to be scared off? I am an old man, are you scared of an old man? Any representative who comes to the forum is fine with me," he said.

Dr Mahathir also said he had learnt a lot from his past and shot down rumours circulating that Kit Siang would be prime minister if Umno were to lose in the next election.


"Najib wants to scare Umno members. Supposedly, if Umno  loses, then, Kit Siang will become prime minister. That is impossible. Kit Siang (‘s DAP) is a small party. The big parties are the two, three parties in Pakatan Harapan that are Malay-led parties.”

He said the eradication of the communal mentality of the Malays was not his task alone, but a task for every Malaysian.
"Eradication of the communal mentality of the Malays is not only my task alone, it is a task for everybody. Why am I only the one to blame?" – July 23, 2017.