KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 (Bernama) -- Democracy only works when the people
understand its limitations, said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
He said democracy would not bring the goodness that it promised when
people thought only of the freedoms of democracy and knew nothing of the implied
responsibilities.
"Instead, it will result only in instability, and instability will not
permit development to take place and the people to enjoy the benefits of freedom
and the rights that democracy promises," he said.
Dr Mahathir, who was Malaysia''s prime minister for 22 years before stepping
down in 2003, said this in his keynote lecture at the University of Santo Tomas''
(UST) special convocation in the Philippine capital, Manila.
He was conferred with an honorary professorship by the university. The
honour is bestowed on distinguished foreign individuals who have achieved
exceptional distinction in their respective fields of expertise.
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MAHATHIR-DEMOCRACY 2 KUALA LUMPUR
Previous recipients include a Nobel laureate in chemistry and a chancellor
from the Vatican, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
In his speech, the text of which was made available to the media here, Dr
Mahathir spoke at length about the possible setbacks of democracy as he referred
to a country which had been unable to progress because of what he described as
"too much democracy".
"No sooner is a government elected when the losers would hold demonstrations
and general strikes, accusing the government of malpractices.
"The government has to deal with these disruptions and neglect the work of
governing and development that it is expected to carry out. The disruption could
be so serious as to force the government to resign," he said without naming the
country in question.
Dr Mahathir said no doubt democracy was being practised by this particular
country but he questioned whether this was really what democracy was all about,
posing the question, "Is democracy the end or the means?"
Noting that Malaysia was not a liberal democracy, he said democracy was
viewed principally as providing an "easy way" to change governments.
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MAHATHIR-DEMOCRACY 3 (LAST) KUALA LUMPUR
"No revolution, no civil wars, no Arab spring. Just vote and the government
will be brought down or re-elected according to the wishes of the people," Dr
Mahathir said.
He drove home the point that in the Malaysian elections, candidates from
opposition parties could win and they had indeed captured a number of state
governments.
On leadership, Dr Mahathir said it must not be corrupt and it must have
some skills and ideas about administration and the development of the country.
"A leader is as good as the ideas that he has. To bring prosperity to the
country, he must know what policies to adopt and what strategies to employ," he
said.
Turning to the economy, Dr Mahathir, who has been courted by Yemen to be its
special economic advisor, said he believed that in this troubled economic
climate, Asean should cooperate more productively and make use of its market of
half a billion people.
"Really the countries of Southeast Asia have great potential for growth,
prosperity and empowerment. All we need is people and leaders who love their
country and people more than they love themselves," he concluded.
The Foreign Ministry said Dr Mahathir and his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd
Ali were received on arrival in Manila yesterday by the Malaysian envoy to the
Philippines, Datuk Seri Dr Ibrahim Saad, and other embassy officials.
Dr Mahathir attended a gathering with the Malaysian community as well as
delivered a keynote speech on "Nation Building and Economic Development" at a
dinner organised by the Asia Society at a leading hotel there.
-- BERNAMA
FZL MAM MO