How Dr Mahathir’s legacy continues to imperil Malaysia’s future

[superadmin]

PETALING JAYA: The rot in the civil service began during Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s first stint as prime minister and has since become a “bloated and increasingly corrupt” entity, a former diplomat said.

In his new book, Paradise Lost: Mahathir & The End of Hope, Dennis Ignatius claimed the former prime minister disdained the idea of independent-minded officials who provided apolitical service.

He alleged that Mahathir craved a more subservient bureaucracy that was “ready to do his bidding” and those who got in his way were removed.

Blind loyalty, he noted, became the most important requirement for career advancement.

Ignatius said Mahathir’s successors continued with such a policy.

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