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By Mihar Dias August 2025
A century old, and Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad still manages to sound more lucid than a whole cabinet full of overpaid underperformers.
At an age when most men are fighting memory loss, Tun M remembers one thing clearly: the country’s politicians have perfected the art of recycling old scripts, particularly that one magical word—sakau. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CQh1zwpDb/
Yes, “sakau” has become Putrajaya’s catch-all karaoke refrain.
Cost of living crisis? Sakau.
Ringgit diving deeper than the Titanic? Sakau.
Investors packing their bags? Sakau.
It’s the national excuse machine, cranked out at every ceramah like a scratched CD.
Tun, with his trademark sting, reminds us: if he really sakau-ed billions, surely, after years of task forces, tribunals, and endless MACC press conferences, somebody could produce more than recycled headlines. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CQh1zwpDb/
A bank slip perhaps, or at least a faded fax from Zurich. But no. Just the same accusations reheated like yesterday’s stale nasi lemak.
Why?
Because actual governance is hard work. It’s easier to weaponise nostalgia, demonise an old man, and hope the rakyat forget who’s really fumbling the ball today.
Leadership has been reduced to Netflix drama—lots of plot twists, zero delivery.
Mahathir, for all his flaws (and let’s be honest, he’s got a museum full), was never boring.
Today’s crop, on the other hand, manage the impressive feat of being boring and incompetent. They wag fingers, shout “fitnah!” louder than a pasar malam loudspeaker, and then retreat into endless committees that generate nothing but warm air.
So here we are: groceries more expensive, patience running thin, and the only word echoing through government corridors is sakau. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CQh1zwpDb/
Tun doesn’t even need to run for office anymore; by merely stating the obvious, he exposes a government still living in his shadow.
The irony? At 100, Mahathir still lands heavier blows with his sarcasm than the ruling class does with all the power of the state behind them.
If only leadership aged half as well as Tun’s cynicism.
Mihar Dias (mihardias@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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