No Need for 'Arab Spring' in Malaysia - Former PM

KUALA LUMPUR, June 26 (Bernama) -- Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad on Monday questioned the clamour by some quarters here to push for an 'Arab Spring' to topple the government when the latter was already giving a lot of priority to the people's interests. "Is our government autocratic? Is it not giving attention to the people, not developing and advancing the country?," he asked. Taking questions at a forum entitled, 'Discusssions with a statesman -- The commitment of graduates will be a catalyst for national progress' at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) here, Dr Mahathir (second from left) said Malaysia had a democratic system which was much better than many countries affected by the 'Arab Spring'. He said that in certain countries which were not so democratic and their leaders indulged in self-interest, there was widespread suffering because those governments did not prioritise the interests of their people. "The people continued to suffer, the percentage of poverty went up, in fact, there were cases of university graduates who were unemployed, and these were the factors that led to the uprisings," he said. Dr Mahathir said the 'Arab Spring' exposed undemocratic and autocratic regimes which forced the people to topple their governments. In comparison, he said, Malaysia was quite different and as such, there was no necessity "for us to act outside of the law to topple the governmment" and therefore, the people should evaluate the situation rationally. Meanwhile, when asked to comment on the leadership tussle at opposition's, 'Parti Keadilan Rakyat' (PKR) in Selangor, Dr Mahathir said that it would affect Selangor PKR but the National Front (Barisan Nasional-BN) should not be exhilarated over the situation. "The turbulence taking place will affect PKR, but BN needs to continue its effort to win back Selangor in the coming general election. They (BN) must work hard as they cannot just expect to win against weak opponents," he added. Also seen was Dean of the Faculty of Medicine & Director of UKM Medical Centre Prof Dr Raymond Azman Ali (left). (photoBERNAMA) MALAYSIA