Dr Mahathir, who led the Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA) coalition in Malaysia’s 15th Basic Election, did not defend his Langkawi seat – his first electoral defeat in 53 years.
He misplaced his deposit after ending fourth in a five-cornered battle, which was gained by Perikatan Nasional’s Mohd Suhaimi Abdullah.
LASTING LEGACY
“If you happen to have a look at the bodily panorama in and round KL (Kuala Lumpur), his title is written on it, from the Petronas Twin Towers to the Multimedia Tremendous Hall and so forth,” mentioned Dr Francis Hutchinson, senior fellow and Malaysia Research Programme coordinator on the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.
The Multimedia Tremendous Hall, introduced in 1996, was Dr Mahathir’s plan to rework Malaysia right into a knowledge-based financial system.
Dr Hutchinson additionally mentioned the election outcome was “fairly ironic and troublesome” for Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister, given his affiliation with the state of Kedah and particularly, Langkawi.
“When he was prime minister the primary time, really after the KL federal territory, Kedah received quite a lot of improvement expenditure, and he was actually the one form of making an attempt to develop Langkawi as a global vacation spot. That was, I suppose, behind the considering of why he selected that seat,” Dr Hutchinson mentioned.
Dr Serina Abdul Rahman, visiting fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute’s Malaysia Programme and Regional Financial Research, additionally highlighted Dr Mahathir’s efforts in shifting the nation’s financial focus from agriculture to industrialisation and manufacturing.
This text was initially revealed by channelnewsasia.com. Learn the unique article right here.
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