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Cashing in on Dr Mahathir's call on President Bush

Nothing in Malaysia is what it seems. The Prime Minister, Dato' Seri Mahathir Mohamed, last month, at last called on President Bush as he desired, but not how he would have liked. It could not be arranged as an official visit. The State Department was lukewarm and the National Security Council was none too keen to have him call on the President just yet. Wisma Putra and the foreign minister, Dato' Seri Syed Hamid Albar, having failed, four key men stepped in with the help of US insurance companies, to make the visit happen: The former cabinet minister, Tan Sri Megat Junid Megat Ayob; the current cabinet minister, Dato' Seri Rais Yatim; the business men Tan Sri Francis Yeoh and Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing. It was Tan Sri Megat Junid who got the visit put back, but the other three insist it was they. And now all four want to paid for their "success" -- in contracts and perks that could run into billions of ringgit and political IOUs.

The Prime Minister stayed at Blair House, the official residence for official visitors, but the 35-minute meeting, while cordial and warm, was not rated the importance in Washington as Malaysians were led to believe. There was no press coverage in Washington as there would when there is an official call on the President. Nothing changed in bilateral ties except for President Bush to reiterate ever more strongly the jailing of the former deputy prime minister, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim was political, not criminal. Dr Mahathir was ignored in the photo call after the meeting, and the questions the reporters asked had little to do with Malaysia. But the President's barbed response to one on Cuba could well have applied to Malaysia. In other words, Dr Mahathir was less than pleased at how he was treated.

So, one is not surprised at his injured response to the needling questions he was asked over CNN. He could have, as one Pakistani former foreign secretary, handled Tim Sebastian in BBC "Hard Talk" programme, when he said what he wanted to say whatever the question he was asked. But Dr Mahathir is taciturn at press conferences to the soft questions Malaysian reporters throw at him that he has come to believe that is the way to handle all reporters. And he got caught. He should have gone on the offensive, and dominated the interview instead of the other way around. But media handling in Malaysia is to cow the local media. That cannot be translated overseas or even to foreign reporters. Once he could. Few could get to him and the visiting reporter was prepared to abide by the rules which prevent him from asking the embarassing questions he would rather not answer.

But when the gloss of leadership tarnishes, as now, even former friends turn out to be more than barking dogs. I am always amused by the desire of many leaders to appear on programmes that have a worldwide audience in what is an ego-massaging act. CNN built an unjustified reputation to make sundry world leaders rush to appear on it. Those who do not build a more solid reputation. Look at Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He sets the terms for any television interview, he knows what he wants to say, and no one, not even the most obstreporous interviewer, can shake him off that. He also bites back with equal venom, and today he is regarded as a statesman by the very reporters who dare not confront him.

A leader could only do that if he is sure of his place. As Dr Mahathir is not. Which is why he needs to reassure himself he is not the dictatorial ogre the world is convinced he is on the way to be. As his friend, President Robert Mugabe, already is. But was it worth the effort when Wisma Putra and his minister could not arrange it, that he had to use back channels to make it happen, and have to pay for it in kind long after the gloss of the visit has tarnished? There seems, in this visit, a desire, by those who arranged it, far more insidious than national interest. In these circumstances, it took on the role of a supplicant seeking favours from a warlord. No Malaysian Prime Minister has been reduced to this ever in modern Malaysian history.

But by mishandling affairs in Malaysia, he had no other choice. He is driven by forces beyond his control. Which accounts for his temper when things go wrong, as in Washington. That was reflected in Washington when the new Malaysian chancery was declared open. The ambassador made it a point to sideline his foreign minister to another table at the reception that followed in what looks a deliberate slap for which the repercussions have yet to be calculated. Dr Mahathir could have reversed it, but he no doubt could see reason why. All the visit ensured then was to highlight the international Malaysian political, diplomatic, cultural, business and other contradictions. Like President Bush, Dr Mahathir has forgotten about the visit. There is more to it that damages him than any kudos he could have reaped out of it. And could Malaysia afford to pay for it?

M.G.G. Pillai
pillai@mgg.pc.my